Therapeutic cancer vaccines: the latest advancement in targeted therapy

Therapeutic cancer vaccines represent an emerging therapeutic modality that may play a more prominent role in cancer treatment in the future. Therapeutic cancer vaccines are designed to generate a targeted, immune-mediated antitumor response. There are 2 main types of therapeutic vaccines: patient-specific (generated either from a patient's own cells or tumor) and patient- nonspecific, where a peptide- or vector-based vaccine induces an immune response in vivo against specific tumor-associated antigens. Studies are currently underway to investigate methods to enhance vaccine strategies, including combinations with standard anticancer therapies or immune-modulating agents. Cancer vaccines are usually well tolerated, with minimal toxicity compared with chemotherapy. This review summarizes selected therapeutic cancer vaccines in late clinical development.