Telomerase-based immunotherapy of cancer

The progression from the cloning of human telomerase reverse transcriptase (hTERT) in 1997 to the first clinical trials of hTERT as an antitumour immunotherapy target has been swift. hTERT is overexpressed in the vast majority of human cancers yet has limited expression in normal adult tissue. It plays a critical role in oncogenesis and may be expressed by cancer stem cells. However, despite being a self antigen, hTERT is immunogenic both in vitro and in vivo. Several Phase I studies of hTERT immunotherapy have been completed in patients with breast, prostate, lung and other cancers, and clinical and immunological results are encouraging. Immunotherapy induces functional, antitumour T cells in patients in the absence of clinical toxicity. The opportunity for vaccinating individuals as an immunoprevention strategy can also be envisioned for hTERT-based therapies.