Current status and future prospects of peptide-based cancer vaccines

Cancer immunotherapy has attracted attention worldwide owing to the recent development of immune checkpoint inhibitors. However, these therapies have shown limited efficacy, and further advancements are needed before these modalities can progress to widespread use. Immune checkpoint inhibitors are a type of nonspecific cancer immunotherapy, and antitumor effects are only observed when cancer-specific T cells are found within the nonspecifically activated T-cell group. In order to facilitate the development of potent immunotherapies, selective enhancement of cancer-specific T cells is essential. In this report, we discuss current and future perspectives, including the latest clinical trials of cancer-specific immunotherapies, particularly cancer peptide vaccines.