I have excerpted the linked article below- as I understand it, this vaccine is given to survivors after a transplant to maintain tumor free survival as long as possible. While this article isn't clear on the subject, I think they mean "event- free survival" meaning the vaccine prolongs remission- there is no info about people living longer. david
"Tumor-free survival rates were approximately 80 percent
in animals receiving the combination of GVAX® vaccine and transplantation,
40 percent in animals receiving vaccination alone and zero percent in
animals receiving neither treatment. Additionally, GVAX® vaccination
resulted in the sustained production of an expanded population of tumor-specific
immune cells, thereby redirecting the immune system to recognize and destroy
tumor cells."
"GVAX® cancer vaccine for multiple myeloma
is a vaccine comprised of the patient's irradiated tumor cells (collected
prior to chemotherapy) mixed with a non patient-specific GVAX® product
manufactured at Cell Genesys. As with all GVAX® products, cells have
been genetically modified to secrete granulocyte-macrophage colony stimulating
factor (GM-CSF), a hormone that plays a key role in stimulating the body's
immune response to vaccines."
"The Phase 1/2 trial of GVAX® myeloma vaccine enrolled 22 patients,
and 16 patients received at least one GVAX® vaccination. Interim
data were presented at the December 2004 American Society of
Hematology Meeting. Combination therapy with chemotherapy followed
by
transplantation and GVAX® vaccine resulted in six complete responses,
five partial responses, three patients with stable disease and two patients
with progression."
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