From a London newspaper today 9/22

[Guest guest]

Vaccine 'cure' for cancer

By Isabel Oakeshott, Evening Standard

22 September 2003

Scientists said today they are on the brink of a major cancer

breakthrough with a revolutionary vaccine.

The new technique has produced dramatic results against one of the

most vicious cancers, that of the pancreas, which has a 95 per cent

mortality rate.

The findings, which raise hope that a cure is within reach, are being

unveiled at a major international conference in Copenhagen.

An American team was revealing a new treatment-based on the body's

ability to fight disease. Patients were given powerful injections of

material taken from their own cells, designed to assist their immune

systems, recognise and

attack the disease.

The vaccines are designed for patients who already have cancer and

help their bodies over-whelm the tumours. They are tailor-made to

each individual, using so-called heat-shock proteins produced by the

body to help cells rebuild

themselves after potentially lethal attacks.

Today the US team said that almost a third of the patients lived

twice as long as expected — for at least two years. One patient was

alive and disease-free after five years.

Typical life expectancy after surgery for pancreatic cancer is just

over one year.

Oncologist Dr Maki, from New York, said: " Tests on the

patients showed that at least some people we examined made a response

against the vaccine, and therefore, hopefully, against the cancer.

" Over 95 per cent of people with pancreatic cancer die, typically

within

two years of diagnosis, and mortality is still about 90 per cent even

for those who have complete removal of their pancreatic cancer. So

the finding of even a few patients surviving two years or more is

promising. "

Scientists have been working on the vaccines since the Nineties.

Although some

human trials have taken place, so far much of the research has been

laboratorybased.

Today the US-led team revealed that work on the vaccines had entered

a new phase

with patients now seeing the benefit of years of laboratory research.

If successful, the vaccines could eliminate the need for conventional

treatments such as chemotherapy and radiotherapy.

At the European Cancer Conference in Copenhagen, the US team was

revealing

that the technique could also be used to develop effective vaccines

against infectious diseases.

Dr Maki said: " It is gratifying to see the studies move from bench to

patients. This same technique could also be used in preparing

vaccines against infectious disease — another very large area of

potential use. "

Last month it emerged that the treatment had also produced " very

promising "

results against colon cancer.

Trials on patients with advanced kidney cancer also showed exciting

results —

with half of the patients still alive two years after their vaccines.

Normally, only 15 per cent would have been expected to survive.

In trials for skin cancer, 95 per cent of the patients were still

alive 14 months after treatment, when the expected survival rate

would normally

be between 40 and 50 per cent.

Vaccines based on heatshock proteins taken from the patients' own

tumours send

their immune systems into " overdrive " , killing the cancer.

However, scientists stress that the treatment is still at an early

stage. They will only know how effective it is when much larger

trials have been carried out.

Trials so far have typically involved fewer than 20 carefully

selected patients.

Although similar techniques have been used against skin cancers,

experts said these were relatively easy to treat, unlike pancreatic

cancer which until now has almost always killed the sufferer.