Study: Oncophage Vaccine Shows Promise for Colorectal Cancer

Two of five colorectal cancer patients participating in a small phase II trial had a significant cancer-specific immune response when treated with the personalized cancer vaccine Oncophage, according to a report in the Journal of Immunology.

Derived from each individual's tumor, Oncophage contains the "antigenic fingerprint" of the patient's cancer, and is designed to reprogram the body's immune system to target and destroy only cancer cells bearing this fingerprint while leaving healthy tissue unaffected.

According to the researchers, two of the five patients with colorectal cancer tested demonstrated cancer-specific immune responses, including an increased production of T cells that can specifically attack colorectal cancer cells.

"Earlier laboratory and clinical studies have shown that the heat shock protein found in Oncophage can present antigenic peptides to T cells and activate them," said Dr. Jonathan J. Lewis, chief medical officer of Antigenics.

"This study provides further support that this mechanism -- considered to play a key function in immune responses to tumors and viruses -- is occurring in the human body in response to Oncophage vaccination," he added.

Oncophage has been granted fast track and orphan drug designations from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for treating both metastatic melanoma and renal cell carcinoma (the most common type of kidney cancer).

Other sources: Antigenics