For breast cancer survivors, the threat of cancer returning can be a constant concern. Modern surgeries are highly successful in removing tumors, but it’s nearly impossible to remove every last cancer cell, which can leave a patient vulnerable to developing another tumor.
The current method for killing residual cancer cells after a surgery involves radiation and chemotherapy, which is highly effective but comes with a suite of debilitating side effects.
A new vaccine to target and kill residual cancer cells in breast cancer patients could replace radiation and chemotherapy entirely. Mary Disis, a UW professor and director of the UW Medicine Cancer Vaccine Institute recently moved two major breast cancer vaccination projects to phase 1 clinical trials.
One of these vaccines, which is intended to target breast cancer stem cells, is currently in a trial with 30 patients to ensure the vaccine is safe and determine the right dosage. The other is intended to treat a type of breast cancer called ductal carcinoma in situ, (DCIS) in which the cells lining the milk ducts have become cancerous but the cancer has not invaded the surrounding breast tissue.
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