The Safety of an Adjuvanted Autologous Cancer Vaccine Platform in Canine Cancer Patients

• Main Authors: Chris Weir, Annika Oksa, Jennifer Millar, Miles Alexander, Nicola Kynoch, Zoe Walton-Weitz, Peter Mackenzie-Wood, Felicia Tam, Hope Richards, Richard Naylor, Katrina Cheng, Peter Bennett, Nikolai Petrovsky, Rachel Allavena
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2018-10-01
• Series: Veterinary Sciences
• Subjects: vaccine; autologous; canine; adjuvant; Advax™
• Online Access: http://www.mdpi.com/2306-7381/5/4/87

Canine cancer rates are similar to humans, though the therapeutic options might be limited. Inducing a patient’s own immune system to have an anti-tumor response is an attractive approach to cancer therapy. In this safety study, autologous tumor vaccines produced specifically for each canine patient were combined with Advax™, a novel non-inflammatory immunomodulator and vaccine adjuvant and were tested for safety in a diverse range of patient presentations alone or in combination with other treatments. Canine patients had their tumor biopsied, debulked or resected and the tumor antigens were processed into an autologous vaccine formulated with Advax™ adjuvant with or without rhizavidin as an additional immune stimulant. Patients treated early in the trial received two intramuscular (IM) doses, 2 weeks apart. As the study progressed and no issues of safety were observed, the protocol was changed to weekly vaccinations for 4 weeks followed by monthly booster shots. Over the 150 I.M injections delivered to date, the vaccine was found to be very safe and no significant adverse reactions were observed. These results justify ongoing development and future controlled studies of this autologous vaccine approach.