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Jeremy S. Abramson, MD, MMSc
Jeremy S. Abramson, MD, MMSc
Posted: Monday, March 3, 2025
Efforts to establish a novel vaccine against cancer peptides have been limited by the lack of suitable antigens and the varying diversity of HLA backgrounds of patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), according to a study published in Frontiers in Immunology. The use of warehouse-based personalized vaccines may overcome some of these obstacles to allow individualized treatment of this patient population, explained Juliane S. Walz, MD, of University Hospital Tübingen, Germany, and colleagues.
From 2016 to 2020, a total of 26 patients with previously untreated CLL were recruited for the study. All patients received a physician-selected first-line therapy for 6 months’ duration. Patients were given a prevaccination; if they achieved at least a partial response, they were able to receive the peptide vaccination. Study participants were stratified based on whether they tested positive for measurable residual disease (MRD) (n = 14) or negative (n = 12). Personalized peptide vaccinations comprised immunopeptidome-defined CLL-associated peptides. Patients’ clinical outcomes were closely evaluated to determine the vaccine’s efficacy.
The study authors reported no difficulties designing personalized warehouse-based vaccines for the patients. Although the endpoint for immunogenicity was not reached, CLL-specific T-cell responses were noted in 19.2% of patients. In addition, evidence of disease progression was revealed in three patients.
Furthermore, all patients experienced treatment-related adverse events. The most common treatment-related adverse effects included injection-site reactions, lymphocytopenia, neutropenia, and flu-like symptoms. Moreover, safety profiles were similar among patients, regardless of MRD status.
“This trial provides proof of concept for the fast-track immunopeptidome-guided design and production of a personalized multipeptide-vaccine cocktail from an established antigen warehouse for clinical use in CLL patients of various HLA backgrounds,” the study authors concluded.
Disclosure: For full disclosures of the study authors, visit frontiersin.org.
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