VATIS UPDATE Article

After the successful results of the immunotherapy route to cancer treatment, the Cancer Institute (WIA), India, has launched the 2nd phase of the clinical trials in collaboration with National Institute of Immunology (NII), India. The Dendritic cell based Human clinical trials being conducted at WIA, are employing therapeutic grade SPAG9, recombinant protein discovered by Dr. Anil Suri, at NII in support of Department of Biotechnology. SPAG9 is a cancer antigen that could help reset the immune system and prepares it with information to target cancer cells.

“This discovery will connect cancer research and treatment in an integrated manner and will be the first Dentritic Cell based cancer vaccine employing SPAG9 being used for Human Cervical Cancer patients in India and in the world”, said Dr. Suri. SPAG9 is a potential biomarker for cervical carcinoma, ovarian cancer, breast and prostate cancer. In immunotherapy, which is a new modality of cancer treatment, the aim is to teach the fighter cells like T-cells to attack cancer cells with this biomarker.

Cancer cells hide from the immune system or block its ability to fight. For the therapy, scientist at the hospital draw cells called monocytes from the patient’s blood and modify them into dendritic cells cells that have efficient antigens to stimulate the ‘fighter’ cells, or T-cells, in the body. These cells are then exposed to the cancer cell proteins drawn from the patient’s tumour. The trial, which is likely to go on for nearly a year, will involve 54 cervical cancer patients.