NSU-MD Faculty Articles

Enhancing the efficacy of cancer vaccines in urologic oncology: new directions.

Publication Title

Nature Reviews Urology

Publisher

Nature Publishing Group

ISSN

1759-4812

Publication Date

10-1-2009

Keywords

Cancer Vaccines, Dinoprostone, Humans, Neoplasms

Abstract

Immunotherapeutic interventions have long been utilized in urologic oncology for the treatment of metastatic renal cell or superficial transitional cell carcinoma. Most recently, the first active specific immunotherapeutic approach, a cancer vaccine, has passed the final phase of human testing and its approval by the FDA is pending. However, evidence suggests that the full protective and therapeutic potential of cancer vaccines has not yet been achieved. Through multiple mechanisms, tumors promote conditions in the tumor-bearing host that mitigate or even eliminate the vaccine-induced antitumor response. Restoration of the impaired immune function is, therefore, imperative for achieving optimum vaccine efficacy. Targeted pharmacological interventions are capable of overcoming tumor-mediated immunosuppression, and thereby enable cancer vaccination to reach its full therapeutic potential.

DOI

10.1038/nrurol.2009.177

Volume

6

Issue

10

First Page

540

Last Page

549

Disciplines

Medicine and Health Sciences

Link to Full Text
Peer Reviewed

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