The challenge in front of "us" is identifying and categorizing these biomarkers.
Whole tumor antigen with its vast amount of characterized and uncharacterized T cell epitopes available for activating CD4+ T helper (Th) and CD8+ cytotoxic lymphocytes (CTLs) simultaneously, represents an attractive alternative source of antigens to tumor-derived peptides and full-length recombinant tumor proteins for dendritic cell (DC)-based immunotherapy [1]. Although it is relatively easy to synthesize large quantities of clinical-grade tumor-associated peptides for the clinics, most of the identified peptides are human leukocyte antigen (HLA)-A2-restricted which means that mostly HLA-A2 positive patients would benefit from this form of treatment. Moreover, the elicited immune responses in cancer patients are restricted to the peptide used for immunization and might be insufficient for controlling tumor growth. As tumor cells frequently undergo high rates of mutation which could result in the loss of a single or multiple antigens, it would be ideal to choose a source of antigen that can elicit a broad polyclonal tumor-specific response directed against multiple antigenic epitopes. Whole tumor antigen offers this distinct advantage as it allows DCs to process and present numerous tumor antigens to stimulate a strong polyclonal T cell response to prevent tumor escape. The stimulated CD4+ Th cells could also provide cognate help to CD8+ T cells to generate a more robust anti-tumor immunity and long-term memory. Moreover, whole tumor cell lysate treatment is suitable for all cancer patients regardless of their HLA type.
DCVax is designed to mobilize the entire immune system, not just one among the many different categories of immune agents in that overall system. DCVax is designed to target not just one but the full set of biomarkers on the patient’s tumor.
Now, with the recent advances in sequencing technology, a solution has been found. A large number of cancer genome sequencing studies have collectively identified the genetic changes that make human tumors grow and progress. As a result of their findings, scientists have discovered that virtually all cancers carry somatic DNA mutations. Unlike hereditary mutations that are passed from parent to child and are present in every cell in the body, somatic mutations form in the DNA of individual cells during a person's life. Because these somatic mutations are only present in tumor cell DNA, they provide an extremely specific biomarker that can be detected and tracked.
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