Researchers at the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) are developing a new type of personalized vaccine to prevent recurrences of oral cancer.
The project is led by Drs. Angela Yoon, Jason Newman and Shikhar Mehrotra, Ph.D., and the team's work is funded by MUSC Hollings Cancer Center.
Dr. Yoon is investigating the release of immune cells that have responded to immunotherapy to treat oral squamous cell carcinoma. Isolated immune cells that have been enlarged and strengthened are injected back into the patient so they can respond at the first sign of the cancer returning. This study builds on previous work led by Dr. Yoon, which showed that a cream approved for the treatment of skin cancer, imiquimod, can shrink tumors before surgery.
Dr. Yoon will take samples of the tumors that Dr. Newman removes from patients and provide them to Dr. Mehrotra. Dr. Mehrotra will identify immune cells that have responded to cancer and expand them into memory T cells tuned to the patient's specific cancer profile.
Dr. Yoon added that if the project is successful, patients will need an annual injection of a personalized vaccine.