This Clinical Trial Is Testing a Breast Cancer Vaccine

Anixa Biosciences, a biotech company dedicated to fighting cancer, recently announced positive results from a Phase 1 clinical trial of their breast cancer vaccine. This vaccine holds particular promise for Black women, who are disproportionately affected by breast cancer. Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is an aggressive form of breast cancer with limited treatment options. It makes up a higher percentage of breast cancer deaths compared to other forms and has a higher recurrence rate. Black women are twice as likely to be diagnosed with TNBC compared to white women. This disparity highlights the urgent need for new and effective treatment options for Black women specifically. How does the breast cancer vaccine work? The Anixa vaccine targets a protein called alpha-lactalbumin, which is present in most TNBC tumors but disappears from healthy tissues after lactation. This “retired” protein essentially acts like a red flag to the immune system, allowing it to recognize and destroy cancer cells expressing it. This approach offers a unique strategy for preventing TNBC recurrence or even potentially preventing the initial onset of the disease. “We’ve tested the vaccine on 25 women so far, and in most cases, we’ve seen a robust immune response,” Amit Kumar, CEO of...