Practical considerations in the development of a human cancer vaccine

Factors involved in the development of a human oncornavirus vaccine are discussed. The isolation and purification of subviral gp69/71 antigenic components enhance the feasibility of developing safe vaccine. The recent isolation of a C-type virus (the HL-23) from a human leukemic patient and its similarity to the simian sarcoma virus presents us with a unique opportunity to test the safety and potency of a vaccine in nonhuman primates.