Challenges in cancer vaccine development for hepatocellular carcinoma

Summary Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the most common liver malignancy, representing the third and fifth leading cause of death from cancer worldwide in men and women, respectively. The main risk factor for the development of HCC is the hepatitis B and C virus (HBV and HCV) infection; non-viral...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of hepatology 2013-10, Vol.59 (4), p.897-903
Main Authors: Buonaguro, Luigi, Petrizzo, Annacarmen, Tagliamonte, Maria, Tornesello, Maria Lina, Buonaguro, Franco M
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Active immunotherapy
Antigens, Neoplasm - immunology
Cancer vaccine
Cancer Vaccines - immunology
Cancer Vaccines - therapeutic use
Carcinoma, Hepatocellular - immunology
Carcinoma, Hepatocellular - therapy
Combined Modality Therapy
Female
Gastroenterology and Hepatology
Hepatocellular carcinoma
Humans
Liver Neoplasms - immunology
Liver Neoplasms - therapy
Male
Metronomic chemotherapy
Molecular Targeted Therapy
Tumor antigen discovery
Tumor Microenvironment - immunology
Vaccination - methods
Vaccination - trends
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Summary:Summary Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the most common liver malignancy, representing the third and fifth leading cause of death from cancer worldwide in men and women, respectively. The main risk factor for the development of HCC is the hepatitis B and C virus (HBV and HCV) infection; non-viral causes (e.g., alcoholism and aflatoxin) are additional risk factors. HCC prognosis is generally poor because of the low effectiveness of available treatments and the overall 5-year survival rate is approximately 5–6%. In this framework, immunotherapeutic interventions, including cancer vaccines, may represent a novel and effective therapeutic tool. However, only few immunotherapy trials for HCC have been conducted so far with contrasting results, suggesting that improvements in several aspects of the immunotherapy approaches need to be implemented. In particular, identification of novel specific tumor antigens and evaluation of most advanced combinatorial strategies could result in unprecedented clinical outcomes with great beneficial effect for HCC patients. The state of the art in immunotherapy strategies for HCC and future perspectives are reported in the present review.
ISSN:0168-8278
1600-0641
DOI:10.1016/j.jhep.2013.05.031