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Generation of a Novel Dendritic-cell Vaccine Using Melanoma and Squamous Cancer Stem Cells
Published on: January 6, 2014
Is cancer vaccination feasible at older age?
Claudia Gravekamp1, Arthee Jahangir1
1Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, 1300 Morris Park Avenue, Bronx, NY 10461, United States.
Abstract:
Age-related defects of the immune system are responsible for T cell unresponsiveness to cancer vaccination at older age. Major immune defects at older age are lack of naive T cells, impaired activation pathways of T cells and antigen-presenting cells (APCs), and age-related changes in the tumor microenvironment (TME). This raises the question whether cancer vaccination is feasible at older age. We compared various cancer vaccine studies at young and old age, thereby focusing on the importance of both innate and adaptive immune responses for cancer immunotherapy. These analyses suggest that creating an immune-stimulating environment with help of the innate immune system may improve T cell responses in cancer vaccination at older age.
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