TAMPA, Fla. — Triple-negative breast cancer is aggressive cancer that grows and spreads quickly, and is more likely to reappear after treatment, according to the American Cancer Society.
But, what if this cancer could be prevented entirely?
Researchers at Cleveland Clinic say they may have found a solution with the creation of a vaccine and are starting human trials.
The clinic says the trial will determine the maximum tolerated dose of the vaccine in individuals with early-stage triple-negative breast cancer, as well as help characterize and optimize the body’s immune response.
“We are hopeful that this research will lead to more advanced trials to determine the effectiveness of the vaccine against this highly aggressive type of breast cancer,” Dr. G. Thomas Budd, principal investigator for the study, wrote in a statement.
In a release, doctors explain this form of breast cancer does not have biological characteristics that typically respond to hormonal or targeted therapies.
Triple-negative breast cancer is responsible for a disproportionately higher percentage of deaths, despite only accounting for 12-15 percent of all breast cancers, the Cleveland Clinic says. It's also twice as likely to impact African-American women.
“The long-term objective of this research is to determine if this vaccine can prevent breast cancer before it occurs, particularly the more aggressive forms of this disease that predominate in high-risk women,” Dr. Vincent Tuohy, the vaccine's primary inventor, wrote in a statement.
Pre-clinical research showed promise in mice.
The Department of Defense-backed human study will include 18-24 people who finished treatments for early-stage triple-negative breast cancer within the last three years. Participants must be high-risk but tumor-free.
The study is scheduled to conclude next September, but it could be a while before the vaccine gets cleared and distributed. There's hope, though, that it could one day help beyond just triple-negative breast cancer.
“This vaccine strategy has the potential to be applied to other tumor types,” Dr. Tuohy explained in a statement. “Our translational research program focuses on developing vaccines that prevent diseases we conform with age, like breast, ovarian, and endometrial cancers.”
One day, researchers hope the vaccine could improve life expectancy and change the course of adult-onset cancers.
