Roswell Park intrigued by Cuban vaccine for lung cancer treatment
Roswell Park intrigued by Cuban vaccine for lung cancer treatment
By Henry Davis | News Medical Reporter
on April 23, 2015 - 3:39 PM
The lung cancer vaccine from Cuba that Roswell Park Cancer Institute wants to study in the United States offers intriguing hope in extending the life of patients.
A small trial of the vaccine in Cuba for patients who failed chemotherapy and radiation found that it significantly increased life expectancy, and larger studies are underway in Cuba and other countries. The vaccine also appears to have few side effects and is inexpensive to produce. But any optimistic expectations must be put into perspective.
The potential improvement in survival in late-stage cancer patients is a matter of months. And, like other lung cancer vaccines in clinical trials, it will have to prove itself effective in larger studies in this country, a process that will take years.
“This is an interesting vaccine because of its novel approach. And, because it has such mild side effects, the possibility of using it for prevention is exciting,” said Dr. Kelvin Lee, chairman of the cancer center’s department of immunology.
Roswell Park struck a deal with the Center for Molecular Immunology in Cuba to bring into the U.S. for study two vaccines developed at the Cuban organization – CIMAvax and racotumomab. The announcement came Tuesday at the conclusion of a two-day state foreign trade mission to Havana. The delegation with Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo included Lee; Candace Johnson, Roswell Park’s chief executive officer; and Howard Zemsky, president and chief executive officer of Empire State Development Corp.
More:
http://www.buffalonews.com/city-region/medical/roswell-park-intrigued-by-cuban-vaccine-for-lung-cancer-treatment-20150423
= new reply since forum marked as read
Cuban anti-cancer vaccine heads to Roswell Park, NY
April 22, 2015 — Sabina Becker
Dr. Candace Johnson of the Roswell Park Cancer Institute, speaking at a press conference in Cuba. Behind her, at left, is New York governor Andrew Cuomo.
Well. If THIS isn’t historic, I don’t know what is:
(…)
It concerns the therapeutic anti-cancer vaccine CIMAVax-EGF, created by Cuba in 2011 after 15 years’ research, with worldwide patent rights.
The vaccine is registered in Cuba and Peru, but countries such as Brazil, Argentina and Colombia are in the process of registration, and others such as the UK and Australia have begun clinical trials with it.
Translation mine.
I do believe I blogged on this a few years ago. At the time, Cuban vaccine developments were studiously ignored by the major US media. That all has changed now, as this Time Warner article makes plain:
“They’ve agreed to share that information with us, and we will now prepare the IND that will go to the FDA to get approved,” Johnson said.
Johnson said the way the vaccine works is unique.
“This is an anti-growth factor vaccine. The growth factor is called EGF, and that’s unique. It’s not killing the tumor cell directly. It’s taking something the tumor needs to grow away, and so it has less toxicity associated with it,” Dr. Johnson said.
She said in addition to treating cancer, it could have the ability to prevent cancer.
Johnson said she has no hard timetable on when the clinical trials will begin, but hopes to start in about eight months.
More:
http://www.sabinabecker.com/2015/04/cuban-anti-cancer-vaccine-heads-to-roswell-park-ny.html