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A personalized kidney cancer vaccine has shown remarkable success in an early-phase clinical trial, achieving remission in nine advanced-stage patients.
Conducted by researchers at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and published in the journal Nature, the study involved patients diagnosed with stage III or IV clear cell renal cell carcinoma, a common form of kidney cancer. Each patient received a vaccine tailored to the unique mutations in their tumor cells, with an aim to train the immune system to recognize and attack any remaining cancer cells post-surgery.
After a median follow-up period of 34.7 months after the vaccination, all participants remained cancer-free.
The vaccine development process began with the extraction of tumor tissue during surgical removal. Researchers analyzed each patient’s tumor DNA to identify unique mutations, known as neoantigens, which are specific to their cancer cells. These neoantigens were then used to create a personalized vaccine for each patient that would help train the body's immune system to recognize and attack remaining cancer cells.
The vaccination process started with an initial series of doses followed by booster shots. Five of the nine patients also received the immunotherapy drug ipilimumab together with the vaccine. The patients reacted well to the treatment, with no severe side effects reported. Some patients experienced minor reactions such as flu-like symptoms or mild discomfort at the injection site.
"We’re very excited about these results, which show such a positive response in all nine patients with kidney cancer," shared Dr. Toni Choueiri, director of the Dana-Farber Lank Center for Genitourinary Cancer and the study's co-senior author.
However, he emphasized the need for a larger study to confirm the vaccine’s efficacy and safety across a bigger patient population.
According to data from the American Cancer Society, kidney cancer is one of the 10 most common cancers in the U.S. and accounts for up to 5% of all cancer cases. In 2024, approximately 81,600 new cases of kidney and renal pelvis cancer were reported to be diagnosed in the country, with 52,380 cases in men. An estimated 14,390 deaths were projected.
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