A Global Partnership for Clinical Development of Therapeutic Cancer Vaccines

The Cancer Vaccine Collaborative, a joint program of the Cancer Research Institute and the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research, is a coordinated global network of clinical trial sites with special expertise in immunology conducting parallel early-stage clinical trials to identify the optimal composition of successful therapeutic cancer vaccines.

Immunological control will be critical to the eventual mastery of cancer.
– Dr. Lloyd J. Old - Director, Cancer Vaccine Collaborative

Cancer Immunotherapy: An emerging treatment modality

Conquering cancer through immunology is a bold idea for which the time finally has come. After many decades of research, it has now been established that the immune system can eliminate cancer. In much the same way that it recognizes and destroys infectious agents or damaged cells, the immune system can detect and eliminate cancer cells before they are able to form tumors that can endanger the body. Cancer develops when the immune system either fails to recognize cancer cells as foreign, or the immune response to cancer is suppressed or outpaced before it is able to fully eliminate cancer cells, enabling them to grow into malignant and clinically detectable tumors.

Cancer Vaccines: Mobilizing the body's defenses against cancer

Therapeutic cancer vaccines are a new class of promising treatments designed to address these challenges by initiating, strengthening, and then sustaining a comprehensive immune response against cancer. There is compelling clinical evidence that these vaccines have the potential to achieve substantial tumor regression, to prevent cancer recurrence, and to help patients maintain lifelong control of their existing cancers. In addition, unlike most other current forms of cancer treatment, cancer vaccines can generate a specific attack on tumor cells—even those that may be clinically undetectable—without harming normal cells.

Inquiries about the Cancer Vaccine Collaborative may be directed to grants@cancerresearch.org.

©2009 Cancer Research Institute