A preclinical study led by Ludwig Oxford’s Benoît Van den Eynde and Carol Leung along with their Oxford colleagues Irina Redchenko and Adrian Hill reported the results of a preclinical study evaluating a prime-boost regimen for cancer vaccination employing the viral vector used in the Oxford/AstraZeneca SARS-CoV2 vaccine and a modified vaccinia Ankara (MVA) vector. The researchers reported in a September issue of the Journal for ImmunoTherapy of Cancer that the prime-boost regimen in mice boosted the number of T cells infiltrating into tumors expressing P1A, the murine equivalent of MAGE-type cancer antigens that were identified and validated by Ludwig researchers, including Benoît. Vaccination enhanced responses to anti-PD-1 immunotherapy, reducing tumor size and extending survival of mice compared to anti-PD-1 immunotherapy alone. The researchers also showed that the human version of the prime-boost vaccine regimen—targeting the MAGE-type antigens MAGE-A3 and NY-ESO1—induces strong immune responses. A Phase 1/2a clinical trial of that vaccine regimen in combination with anti-PD-1 immunotherapy and chemotherapy for the treatment of lung cancer has begun, in collaboration with Cancer Research UK, which is sponsoring the trial, and as part of a partnership between Ludwig and Vaccitech plc.
This article appeared in the February 2022 issue of Ludwig Link. Click here to download a PDF (1 MB).