Re: RE: [SPAM:XXXXXXX] Vaccines and Gene Therapy

[Guest guest]

It is too early to tell whether there will be any benefit to vaccine therapy for CLL patients. I believe that eventually there will be, but we have much to learn regarding how to administer it (dose, timing, etc.). This current trial is the first foray into vaccines for CLL. The follicular lymphoma vaccines are being given after treatment, while the CLL vaccine is being given without prior treatment. This is one of many differences that will likely impact on effectiveness.

Rick Furman, MD

Re: [sPAM:XXXXXXX] Vaccines and Gene Therapy >

> > > The gene therapy is a term used when genes are introduced into > patients.Vaccine therapies use proteins that are similar in > appearance to the target > in order to generate an immune response. Sometimes there is an > overlap of > these two terms, but they are different. > > The Genitope vaccine trial for CLL patients does not use gene > therapy. In > this trial, a copy of the antibody located on the outside of each > patient'sCLL cell is joined to a protein called KLH which helps to > stimulate the > immune system to generate an immune response. The antibody > structure is > what the immune response is to be directed against. The structure > of the > antibody is generated by cloning (or characterizing) the gene for the

> antibody, but this is not gene therapy. Researchers just > determine the DNA > sequence of the antibody from the CLL cells and then produce the > antibody in > the laboratory. > > There are some vaccine therapies where they might inject a piece > of DNA > that contains the information for making the protein to be > targeted into a > cell in the body. This DNA gets taken up into a cell and the cell > makes the > vaccine itself. This is an example of where gene therapy and > vaccines are > combined. This strategy is currently not being studied in CLL. > > The Genitope vaccine trial, if proven effective, will certainly be > broadened to include other populations. It is first most > important to > determine if it works in the population of patients where it has the

> greatest likelihood of working. > > Rick Furman, MD > > At 07:18 PM 8/1/2007, you wrote: > > > > I would like more info. re. the difference between a vaccine > for CLL and > Gene Therapy. Perhaps or Dr. Fuhrman can explain the > difference. Do > all > vaccines use gene therapy or just some? > > Also there seems to be quite a few vaccine/and or gene therapy > trialseither > completed or underway. How does one determine if a particular > vaccine/gene > therapy would be a good idea? I know I looked into one > recently and was > told > it was not much different than the one done by Dr Kipps in San > Diego and

> that one did not have a great success rate. It sounds like > there could > be > some pitfalls to these therapies. > > I was very interested in the genitope trial but was excluded > because I > had a > previous cancer that was caught very early and required no tx. > such as > chemo > or radiation. I wonder if someday they may change the criteria > so that I > could be considered, and still don't know for sure if it is > likely to > help > me or not. > > Sometimes it is confusing for me to really know if vaccines or > genetherapy > would be good for me or should I just watch and wait. I am > happy and

> enjoying my life during watch and wait. > I want to thank and Dr. Furman for getting this group > started. It > offers one the chance to discuss CLL in general, discuss personal > situations, and learn as much as possible. > Randolph > atypical CLL > > > > >