A vaccine against breast cancer, it would be a great solution, but it’s not there yet. Scientists are taking another step in the right direction to develop a treatment for one of the most aggressive forms of the disease.

New Zealand scientists are developing a vaccine against an aggressive form of breast cancer, the triple-negative variant (TNBC). The aim is to tackle the primary tumor in the breast, but also to prevent or break down possible metastases, they write in the journal Clinical & Translational Immunology†

helper

The vaccine is administered together with an excipient. This excipient consists of active molecules that take on the role of ‘vaccine helper’. The adjuvant focuses on the breast cancer cells, which are on the surface of the tumor (antigens).

This can lend a helping hand to the immune system to attack and break down the tumor, not only in the breast, but elsewhere in the body. “We tested our vaccines in models against HER2-positive breast cancer (another very aggressive variant) and triple-negative breast cancer,” said study researcher Olivia Burn of the Malaghan Institute from.

“We are particularly interested in the course of triple-negative breast cancer because it is a more aggressive form. It is less treatable, many patients die. We want to change that.”

Favorable effect

She explains: “As a first step, we combined pieces of the HER2 protein with our ‘vaccine helper’. This is a glycolipid (a fat with sugar units attached) that activates specific cells of the immune system. We hoped for an enhanced response of the body against HER2 and saw that a single dose already had a beneficial effect: the growth of the tumor was reduced and metastases in the lungs were prevented,” says Burn.

“After that, we administered a different vaccine in the TNBC model. The goal was to attack a specific protein, NY-ESO-1. This substance is commonly found in TNBC tumors, especially if it has spread to other organs. The data obtained was very encouraging. The tumors were successfully controlled.”

A vaccine against breast cancer is one step closer. Photo: 89Stocker

The greatest danger

“The primary tumor in the breast is easily treatable. The greatest danger lies in the metastases, which can arise even years later in the lung, brain, bone tissue or elsewhere. It is very important to prevent metastases. If we can do that, there won’t be as many people dying from this disease,” Burns said.

“Metastatic cancer usually arises from the same primary source, making them copies of each other. So they also have the same physical markers on the surface. Because of this, there is a good possibility that in the near future we can develop a cancer vaccine that prevents metastases.”

The future

According to Burn, her research shows that this unique glycolipid vaccine can be very effective against the types of breast cancer studied, by triggering a powerful immune response in the body. “We would like to go further in the future and make a vaccine for other forms of breast cancer. We may be able to use RNA techniques for that. This technology could also help us conduct more efficient research into other breast cancer markers. It may then be possible to prevent metastases to other organs, such as the liver.”

The vaccine is therefore far from being available, but the fact that the first results are so promising is already very special.

breast cancer

Breast cancer is the most common type of cancer in women. In the Netherlands, one in seven women will develop the disease at some point in her life. More than 3000 women die each year in our country from its effects.