Types of Cancer Immunotherapy
Cancer immunotherapy, also called biological therapy, refers to therapies that utilize the immune system to fight cancer. Cancer immunotherapy falls into two main categories: passive immunotherapy (the creation of immune cells) and active immunotherapy (the stimulation of the immune system). Therion believes that the active immunotherapy holds the most promise to stimulate a targeted fight against cancer.
Passive Immunotherapy
Passive immunotherapy involves the creation of specific immune elements (for example antibodies) in a laboratory that are administered to patients to fight cancer. Monoclonal antibodies are an example of a passive immunotherapy and represent an important treatment option for several cancers. Monoclonal antibodies are referred to as a "passive" therapy because they are created to recognize and attack specific cancer cells, but they do not stimulate the immune system to generate a response.
Active Immunotherapy (cancer vaccines)
Active immunotherapies, such as Therion's, are often referred to as cancer vaccines because they use the same vaccine strategies that successfully eradicated infectious diseases, such as measles and polio, to fight cancer. While traditional vaccines are designed to prevent disease, cancer vaccines are administered therapeutically to treat a disease that already exists.
Therion's vaccines are an example of active immunotherapy because they are intended to stimulate the body to fight cancer by introducing components that help the immune system to target and destroy cancer cells. There are two types of active immunotherapy: patient-specific and off-the-shelf. Patient-specific therapies (also known as autologous therapies) are created from a patient's tumor cells or blood cells. These specific cells are modified and processed in a laboratory, and then re-administered to the patient to generate an immune response against the specific cancer. Off-the-shelf vaccines, such as Therion's cancer vaccines, are developed to recognize on any person proteins found on specific tumor types, such as breast cancer or prostate cancer. As the name implies, patient-specific vaccines must be manufactured individually for each patient while off-the-shelf vaccines can be manufactured in large quantities and used across broad patient populations.
The Therion Approach
The following elements differentiate Therion's vaccine technology from other cancer treatments:
The company's product candidates are designed with the hope to fight cancer without serious side effects, leading an emerging class of biological therapies;
Each of Therion's cancer vaccines delivers:
Tumor-associated antigens to stimulate a targeted immune response against cancer cells, and
Therion's proprietary triad of costimulatory molecules known as TRICOM� (B7.1, ICAM-1 and LFA-3), believed to enhance and sustain the anti-cancer immune response;
Extensive clinical evaluation with the NCI (National Cancer Institute) has led to optimized product candidates with the highest probability for success;
Previous clinical studies have suggested that Therion's product candidates are well tolerated;
The platform has potential applications in numerous cancer indications, including breast, colorectal, and lung cancers.
Additional Information
To learn more about the immune system and immunotherapy, please visit
The National Cancer Institute at www.nci.nih.gov or www.cancer.gov
The NCI's primer on "understanding the immune system" can be accessed at http://press2.nci.nih.gov/sciencebehind/immune/immune00.htm
The American Cancer Society at www.cancer.org
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