Breast Cancer Vaccine

The vaccine against triple negative breast cancer will be tested on women in remission

Anastasia Kuznetsova-Fantoni, N+1

Trials of a vaccine against triple-negative breast cancer will begin in the United States. They will be attended by 18 to 24 women whose disease is in remission. A press release on the Cleveland Clinic's website states that the vaccine will be administered three times at two-week intervals, and the trials will be completed in September 2022.

Breast cancer in 2020 became the most common type of cancer in terms of the number of new cases: it was detected in 2.26 million people. Also in 2020, 685,000 deaths from it were registered. One of the most aggressive types of breast cancer is triple negative, it does not respond well to existing treatment. The fact is that on the cells of such cancer there are no receptors for estrogen (ER), progesterone (PR) and HER-2 (epidermal growth factor), which are the target for anti-cancer therapy.

Scientists were looking for molecular markers specific only to cells of thrice-negative breast cancer, and found that the protein alpha-lactalbumin, which is usually produced during lactation, is also present in cells of thrice-negative cancer. American doctors led by Vincent K. Tuohy from the Cleveland Clinic have created a vaccine containing recombinant alpha-albumin along with an adjuvant that enhances the immune response. The vaccine was tested on mice: the drug suppressed the growth of an existing tumor, and also prevented its appearance from scratch.

Now the FDA has authorized clinical trials of the vaccine in women with breast cancer. They will involve from 18 to 24 patients who have been treated for triple-negative breast cancer and are in remission, but they have a high risk of relapse of the disease. The vaccine will be administered to patients three times with an interval of two weeks. The research is scheduled to be completed in September 2022.

In the future, scientists also want to test the vaccine on healthy women with a high risk of developing triple-negative breast cancer due to mutations in the BRCA1 or BRCA2 genes. Years will pass before its introduction into clinical practice — the drug must prove that it prevents the development of breast cancer, and also has no serious side effects.

Previously, a colorectal cancer vaccine was tested on humans. Half of the participants developed antibodies or specific T-killers after vaccination.

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