Cancer

Mouse studies suggest a vaccine based on a tetanus toxoid-MUC1 conjugate could help treat MUC1-expressing breast cancer. The conjugate consists of a 22-mer human MUC1 peptide conjugated to tetanus toxoid carrier protein, which induces T helper cell-specific immune responses. In a transgenic mouse model of breast cancer expressing human MUC1, vaccination with the conjugate decreased tumor growth and increased survival compared with no treatment. Next steps could include optimizing the vaccine to improve potency.

Immutep Ltd. and Neopharm Group have CVac, an ex vivo cancer vaccine using a patient's own dendritic cells primed with a MUC1-mannan fusion protein, in Phase II testing for ovarian cancer...