CancerQuest >> Cancer Treatments >> Vaccines to Treat Cancer

An Introduction to Tumor Vaccines

The purpose of cancer vaccines is to stimulate the body's defenses against cancer by increasing the response of the immune system. Our immune system provides a dynamic protective system against disease from foreign pathogens and from abnormal body cells. Cancer cells are, in essence, normal body cells that have sustained mutations and no longer function properly.

Tumor vaccines usually contain proteins found on or produced by cancer cells. By administering forms of these proteins and other agents that affect the immune system, the vaccine treatment aims to involve the patient's own defenses in the fight to eliminate cancer cells. Immunotherapy is a new field in cancer treatment and prevention, and many strategies are being exmined in clinical trials.

The following pages provide information on the immune system and tumor vaccines:

• Overview of the Tumor Vaccine Strategies
• Whole Cell Vaccines
• Antigen Based Vaccines
• Antigen Presenting Cell Vaccines
• Non-specific and Cytokine Strategies
• The Future of Cancer Vaccines

Cancer vaccines:

• Cervical Cancer Vaccines
• Melanoma Vaccines