Abstract
Immune therapies aiming at the destruction of a residual tumor and inducing tumor-specific memory responses are gaining acceptance among clinicians treating head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). This solid tumor lends itself remarkably well to currently popular vaccination strategies. Immune suppression is a hallmark of HNSCC, and its reversal accompanied by the vaccinemediated restoration of antitumor immunity might be a promising approach to achieving improved survival of HNSCC patients. To date, few antitumor vaccines for HNSCC have been clinically evaluated. The reasons for this slow start are discussed, and the ongoing phase I clinical vaccination trials for HNSCC patients are briefly described. The emphasis is on dendritic cell (DC)-based vaccines, largely because of enhanced immunogenicity of epitopes presented by adoptively-transferred DC to responder T cells in vivo. Delivery of such antitumor vaccines in combination with conventional therapies and in the setting of a minimal residual disease to HNSCC patients takes advantage of exquisite specificity of the immune system at the time when tumor-induced suppression is reduced. Vaccine-driven generation, long-term survival and maintenance of tumor-specific immune cells are the objectives that antitumor vaccines have to realize to be clinically beneficial in HNSCC.
Keywords: Head and neck cancer, vaccines, immunization, dendritic cells, tumor escape
Current Cancer Drug Targets
Title: Anti-Tumor Vaccines in Head and Neck Cancer: Targeting Immune Responses to the Tumor
Volume: 7 Issue: 7
Author(s): Theresa L. Whiteside
Affiliation:
Keywords: Head and neck cancer, vaccines, immunization, dendritic cells, tumor escape
Abstract: Immune therapies aiming at the destruction of a residual tumor and inducing tumor-specific memory responses are gaining acceptance among clinicians treating head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). This solid tumor lends itself remarkably well to currently popular vaccination strategies. Immune suppression is a hallmark of HNSCC, and its reversal accompanied by the vaccinemediated restoration of antitumor immunity might be a promising approach to achieving improved survival of HNSCC patients. To date, few antitumor vaccines for HNSCC have been clinically evaluated. The reasons for this slow start are discussed, and the ongoing phase I clinical vaccination trials for HNSCC patients are briefly described. The emphasis is on dendritic cell (DC)-based vaccines, largely because of enhanced immunogenicity of epitopes presented by adoptively-transferred DC to responder T cells in vivo. Delivery of such antitumor vaccines in combination with conventional therapies and in the setting of a minimal residual disease to HNSCC patients takes advantage of exquisite specificity of the immune system at the time when tumor-induced suppression is reduced. Vaccine-driven generation, long-term survival and maintenance of tumor-specific immune cells are the objectives that antitumor vaccines have to realize to be clinically beneficial in HNSCC.
Export Options
About this article
Cite this article as:
Whiteside L. Theresa, Anti-Tumor Vaccines in Head and Neck Cancer: Targeting Immune Responses to the Tumor, Current Cancer Drug Targets 2007; 7 (7) . https://dx.doi.org/10.2174/156800907782418310
DOI https://dx.doi.org/10.2174/156800907782418310 |
Print ISSN 1568-0096 |
Publisher Name Bentham Science Publisher |
Online ISSN 1873-5576 |
Call for Papers in Thematic Issues
Advances in Cancer Biomarkers and Potential Drug Targets: From Diagnosis to Therapy
Cancer biomarkers play a crucial role in the diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment of cancer. They provide valuable information for cancer detection, risk assessment, treatment selection, and monitoring response to therapy. With advancements in molecular biology and high-throughput technologies, there has been an increasing interest in identifying and characterizing cancer biomarkers ...read more
Novel Therapeutic Approaches to Target Drug Resistant Tumors
With the development of disciplines such as chemical biology and molecular biology, the genes or proteins closely related to tumor occurrence and development have gradually become clear. Targeted therapies targeting these genes or proteins provide more effective methods for tumor treatment. Tumor targeted drugs generally only act on specific targets ...read more
ROLE OF IMMUNE AND GENOTOXIC RESPONSE BIOMARKERS IN TUMOR MICROENVIRONMENT IN CANCER DIAGNOSIS AND TREATMENT
Biological biomarkers have been used in medical research as an indicator of a normal or abnormal process inside the body, or of a disease. Nowadays, various researchers are in process to explore and investigate the biological markers for the early assessment of cancer. DNA Damage response (DDR) pathways and immune ...read more
Targeting the battlefield between host and tumor: basic research and clinical practice on reshaping tumor immune microenvironment
Immune system protects host against malignant tumors through effector cells and molecules. Cancer development and its response to therapy are regulated by inflammation, which either promotes or suppresses cancer progression. Chronic inflammation facilitates cancer progression and treatment resistance, whereas induction of acute inflammatory reactions often lead to anti-cancer immune responses. ...read more
- Author Guidelines
- Graphical Abstracts
- Fabricating and Stating False Information
- Research Misconduct
- Post Publication Discussions and Corrections
- Publishing Ethics and Rectitude
- Increase Visibility of Your Article
- Archiving Policies
- Peer Review Workflow
- Order Your Article Before Print
- Promote Your Article
- Manuscript Transfer Facility
- Editorial Policies
- Allegations from Whistleblowers
Related Articles
-
A Review on Natural Sources Derived Protein Nanoparticles as Anticancer Agents
Current Topics in Medicinal Chemistry The Typical Metabolic Modifiers Conferring Improvement in Cancer Resistance
Current Medicinal Chemistry HPV as a Model for the Development of Prophylactic and Therapeutic Cancer Vaccines
Current Molecular Medicine Novel Beta-Lactam Antibiotics Derivatives: Their New Applications as Gene Reporters, Antitumor Prodrugs and Enzyme Inhibitors
Mini-Reviews in Medicinal Chemistry Poly(lactic acid)-poly(ethylene oxide) Block Copolymers: New Directions in Self-Assembly and Biomedical Applications
Current Medicinal Chemistry Novel Therapeutic Approaches to Regulate Human Dihydrofolate Reductase Activity and Expression
Current Enzyme Inhibition New Approaches in Glioblastoma Multiforme: The Potential Role of Immune- check Point Inhibitors
Current Cancer Drug Targets Artesunate Enhances the Antiproliferative Effect of Temozolomide on U87MG and A172 Glioblastoma Cell Lines
Anti-Cancer Agents in Medicinal Chemistry A Systems Biology Road Map for the Discovery of Drugs Targeting Cancer Cell Metabolism
Current Pharmaceutical Design Notch-Associated MicroRNAs in Cancer
Current Drug Targets Recent Advances and Challenges in Adipose Tissue Engineering: Adipose Derived Stem Cell-based Approaches
Current Tissue Engineering (Discontinued) Nonbacterial Thrombotic Endocarditis (Marantic Endocarditis) in Cancer Patients
Cardiovascular & Hematological Disorders-Drug Targets NOX3-Targeted Therapies for Inner Ear Pathologies
Current Pharmaceutical Design Development, Validation, and Applications of Anisotropic Polarizable Molecular Mechanics to Study Ligand and Drug-Receptor Interactions
Current Pharmaceutical Design From Bacteria to Antineoplastic: Epothilones A Successful History
Anti-Cancer Agents in Medicinal Chemistry Carrier Deformability in Drug Delivery
Current Pharmaceutical Design ING Proteins as Potential Anticancer Drug Targets
Current Drug Targets HSP90 Inhibitors: Multi-Targeted Antitumor Effects and Novel Combinatorial Therapeutic Approaches in Cancer Therapy
Current Medicinal Chemistry Cancer-Type Organic Anion Transporting Polypeptide 1B3: Current Knowledge of the Gene Structure, Expression Profile, Functional Implications and Future Perspectives
Current Drug Metabolism Emerging Strategies and Challenges for Controlled Delivery of Taxanes: A Comprehensive Review
Current Drug Metabolism