FDA Approval For Ovarian And Breast Cancer Vaccines Received By Mayo Clinic

With the fear of recurrence constantly hanging over the heads of those of us who have had treatments for breast cancer and for which the only way of knowing if the treatments worked is if tumours DON'T resurface in our breasts or brains or livers or bones (no simple blood test to tell, my friends) ... it's nice to know that there is hope on the horizon. What side effects these vaccines might come with, I have no idea but I'm excited to hear about this study. Hurry up, researchers! HURRY UP!!

FDA Approval For Ovarian And Breast Cancer Vaccines Received By Mayo Clinic:

Mayo Clinic has received investigational new drug approval from the Food and Drug Administration for two new cancer vaccines that mobilize the body's defense mechanisms to destroy malignant cells. The vaccines are among the first aimed at preventing cancer recurrence. The approval clears the way for Phase I clinical trials with women treated for ovarian or breast cancer.

"People who've had cancer are at high risk for relapse, and later rounds of treatment can become more difficult," says Mayo Clinic immunologist Keith Knutson, Ph.D., who developed the vaccines with colleagues at Mayo Clinic. While most cancer vaccines to date have been developed to fight patients' tumors, Knutson's group is interested in immunizing patients immediately after therapy, when they're healthy, to protect against relapse.

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