Triple-Negative Breast Cancer Vaccine Shows Promising Results During Clinical Trial

Researchers have found a potential treatment for the aggressive form of breast cancer - triple-negative breast cancer. The possible treatment comes in the form of a vaccine.

Triple-Negative Breast Cancer Vaccine From Clinical Trial

The term "triple negative" describes the characteristic of the cancer that prevents many standard treatments for breast cancer from working: the cancer cells lack receptors for the hormones progesterone and estrogen.

Because of all of this, therapies that particularly target triple-negative cancer are desperately needed.

The novel treatment, available as a vaccine, is a vaccination that was given in three doses during clinical trials. It was found to successfully elicit a T T-cell immune response in patients, suggesting that it may be helpful in the fight against breast cancer. The test was conducted on 16 volunteers who had previously had successful treatment for triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC).

The participants from the clinical trial did not report any significant side effects after trying the vaccine.

"The data from our Phase 1 trial to date has exceeded our expectations, and we are pleased with our progress," said Amit Kumar, Chairman and CEO of vaccine developers Anixa Biosciences, in a press release. "This vaccine is designed to direct the immune system to destroy TNBC cancer cells through a mechanism that has never previously been utilized for cancer vaccine development."

However, according to Dr G. Thomas Budd, a medical oncologist at the Cleveland Clinic, it was difficult to study because the sample was too small. They hoped to get additional funding for further experiments.

Additionally, they hoped that their future studies would support their recent research and show that the antigen-specific T-cell responses they observed were useful in preventing breast cancer recurrence.

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What Is Triple-Negative Breast Cancer?

Triple-negative breast cancer is a type of breast cancer in which none of the receptors typically associated with breast cancer are present. Consider cancer cells as a house. The front door may have three kinds of locks, called receptors. One is for the female hormone estrogen, another for progesterone, and a human epidermal growth factor protein.

If your cancer shows any of these three signs, doctors can utilize several strategies, such as hormone therapy or other drugs, to help kill the cancer cells. That being said, if you have triple-negative breast cancer, the three locks are lacking. As a result, doctors have fewer therapeutic keys. Thankfully, chemotherapy is still an option.

Patients often need to have a mastectomy (removal of the entire breast) or a lumpectomy (removal of the lump). Chemotherapy treatments are then directed against the cancer cells that remain in the breast or may have spread to other parts of the body. Doctors sometimes recommend chemotherapy before surgery to reduce the amount of cancer.

If you have a significant family history of breast cancer, you may have mutations in your DNA that increase your chance of acquiring breast cancer and other cancers. People of Ashkenazi Jewish ancestry, for instance, are more likely to acquire genetic abnormalities that increase the risk of breast cancer, particularly triple-negative breast cancer. Your doctor may discuss risk management strategies with you if you are at an increased risk of developing breast cancer.