Millions of women around the world are suffering from breast cancer. According to the International Agency for Research on Cancer, one in every 20 women in the world is likely to develop breast cancer. In many countries it has become the biggest cause of death for women. But now science has done a new research which aims to create a vaccine to eradicate breast cancer. Due to this, this vaccine can become a major part of cancer treatment in the coming few years. Dr. Nora Decis, who is the head of the Cancer Vaccine Institute at Washington University of America, while talking to the media, says that we have come to an important turning point. According to him, cancer vaccine can become a part of common treatment in the next decade.
What is vaccine and how does it affect cancer?
Mostly vaccines are given to prevent diseases like measles, polio or meningitis, which strengthens the immune system of our body. But in the case of cancer, it is not easy to do this because cancer starts from the body’s own cells, not from any external virus or bacteria. This is why making cancer vaccine is very difficult and expensive. These vaccines often have to be specially prepared according to the tumor of each patient.
Cancer cells contain some special proteins which are not found in normal cells. Scientists identify these special proteins and make vaccines. This vaccine teaches the body’s immune system to recognize and attack those specific cancer cells. In this way the body itself learns to fight cancer.
Which vaccines have been released so far?
1.Vocvac Vaccine – It is a team effort of Dr. Nora DCIS. This vaccine is being tested on women who have been found to have HER2 positive breast cancer. HER2 is a protein that helps breast cancer cells grow rapidly. Along with chemotherapy and surgery, this vaccine was also given to the patients. In the initial results, this vaccine is proving effective.
2. Alpha-Lactalbumin Vaccine – The findings are from Cleveland Clinic and Anixa Biosciences. This is a peptide-based vaccine. It is specifically designed against triple negative breast cancer (TNBC), the most dangerous form of breast cancer. In this, a special protein of breast milk is targeted, which is found in TNBC. This vaccine teaches the body to recognize and attack this protein.
How effective are the initial results of the vaccine?
The immune systems of 70 percent of the women participating in the clinical trials identified and attacked the cancer cells. Very few side effects of the vaccine have been found. Some patients, like Diana Innis, who was battling stage-3 cancer, have been cancer-free for the last three years after taking the vaccine. Although the vaccine is in Phase-2 trial, that is, the initial results are good, but investigation is still pending on a large scale. The next phase of Phase-2 trial will start in 2026, in which there will also be a placebo group. Only after the Phase-3 trial will the vaccine be licensed and will be available in the market.
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