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New cancer vaccine trial helped kill breast cancer cells in Mayo patient (October 10, 2019 news item)

tallguy2 profile image
11 Replies

[Fellow travelers, this sounds a lot like Provenge. But instead of waiting over a weekend for the white blood cells to be returned from a lab in Atlanta or Seal Beach, CA, this article says the "shot is made right there, on the spot." Indeed, our adv. PCa future is likely tied up in the development of precision medicine!]

The Mayo Clinic is testing a new vaccine through clinical trials at Mayo Clinic that has already effectively helped remove cancer cells.

Lee Mercker was the first participant in the clinical trial. She found out she had breast cancer in March.

“DCIS stage zero,” “I’d never heard of it. ”It meant she had a very early stage, where the cancer cells in the ducts of her breasts had not yet spread. She says she was shocked.

“I’m an exercise fanatic, I eat right,” Mercker said. “But it just can knock on anybody’s door.”

That left her with three options. She could go the traditional route of having a lumpectomy where the cancer cells are removed, a mastectomy where the breasts are removed, or she could join a clinical trial for a potentially life-saving vaccine that could prevent the cancer cells from coming back.

“I signed on the dotted line that day," Mercker said.

Dr. Saranya Chumsri says the vaccine helps the body fight cancer cells.

“It’s supposed to stimulate a patient's own immune response so that the immune cells like t-cells would go in and attack the cancer,” Chumsri said.

For Mercker, it worked. She says it was just a 12-week process.

“They always took your blood, you had a physical, they’d make your shot right there on the spot for you,” Mercker said. “It was three shots, all in a row, alternating arms, four shots, two weeks apart.”

As part of the trial, Mercker still had to have a mastectomy.

“That is the only way we know that everything was removed properly,” Chumsri said.

Chumsri says that helps researchers too, so they’re able to study the removed breast tissue to assess how well the vaccine works. She says eventually, they hope it can be used to prevent cancer entirely.

Unlike previous vaccines they were working on that were invasive, this version is made to be administered easily.

“It’s supposed to be just off the shelf, kind of similar to when you get the flu shot or pneumonia shot,” Chumsri said.

Researchers are now testing that vaccine on another patient who is also reportedly showing good results.

Chumsri says they’ve made such incredible strides because of people who participate in the clinical trials. She says they’ve got trials for all stages of cancer, even having Stage 4 cancer patients showing positive results.

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tallguy2
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11 Replies
greatjohn profile image
greatjohn

Sounds like the dream we all dream of.

Fingers crossed.

J

larry_dammit profile image
larry_dammit

Wow. I was told if I lived long enough that they might find something that kills cancer. Fingers crossed here 🙏🙏🙏

j-o-h-n profile image
j-o-h-n

Rooting for a Grand Slam...

Good Luck, Good Health and Good Humor.

j-o-h-n Friday 10/11/2019 1:13 PM DST

GoBucks profile image
GoBucks

Ok but I'd rather the trial administer the vaccine and leave the breast intact. Maybe that'll be next.

whatsinaname profile image
whatsinaname in reply to GoBucks

I agree. They gave her 3 options and asked her to choose one.

Then they insisted that she had to do two out of the three.

Great friggin' progress :-(

Fuzzman77 profile image
Fuzzman77

Just declared cancer free the other day and the credit for the most part goes to APCEDEN true autologous dendritic cell vaccines(NOT Provenge) made from my own tumor. It's a miracle. From a 212 PSA, Gleason 9 in August 2014 to where I had about 30 meets in March 2017 to complete resolution of all cancer after a prostatectomy 2 weeks ago. Pathology showed cancer was contained within the prostate and seminal vesicles, tissue etc were free from malignancy. On old bone met in the sacrum is still not totally healed but now shows as dead with no SUV uptake. 2nd cancer I have had with bone mets now go into remission they are calling it using similar vaccines. First was TVAX for kidney cancer in 1996 that they r looking for funding to resurrect. Very, very, very lucky.

tallguy2 profile image
tallguy2 in reply to Fuzzman77

This is truly a miracle. There’s no mention of your treatment in any literature I read prior to deciding to do Provenge. I am very very happy for you! How do I learn more about APCEDEN? Is it FDA approved. In trials, or...? Does my doing Provenge rule out that treatment? Congratulations on your results!!

Fuzzman77 profile image
Fuzzman77 in reply to tallguy2

PSA Dec 12th was <0.01 or undetectable. Hoping it stays there for awhile, the longer the better! You can read about it at APACBiotech.com

They do seem to be getting better response rates when used in combo with something else. Here's a paper about a guy that had more mets than me. future-science.com/doi/full...

Fuzzman77 profile image
Fuzzman77

They used FDA RECIST guidelines in their trials. Nothing will preclude you although they are honest about someone being so sick it is less likely to help. Since it is offered now in private pay hospitals in India it can be done as long as you have the money to pay for it. The treatment is approved by CDSCO, the India version of FDA in the US. Trials were completed in 2015 I believe. They only treated 5 metastatic prostate cancer patients in the trial. One is still in remission, one had a recurrence 5 years later and did more vaccines, and there are at least 2 more like me that had the vaccines after it was approved by CDSCO. Response rate was only 30% in the trial, but they were giving it to people sicker than me in the trial, not that I wasn't very sick. Provenge is better than nothing however and may very well stabilize you. This is a vaccine, but it is NOT to be confused with Provenge.

Bob10 profile image
Bob10

Where can I received this treatment

Bob10 profile image
Bob10

Ok I'm surprised that there wasn't more responders on this subject

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