A new vaccine could mean a much brighter future for prostate cancer patients. The now-experimental treatment offers a novel approach to battling the disease and has shown promise in extending life. The Provenge cancer vaccine, manufactured by the Seattle-based Dendreon Corp., improved overall survival when compared to a dummy treatment in a study of 512 men with advanced disease. Dendreon says it will seek federal approval of the treatment later this year. Unlike traditional disease-preventing vaccines, Provenge is a therapeutic vaccine, which treats cancer by training the immune system to fight tumors. Provenge would be the first such treatment on the market if the government gives it the go-ahead. “This is an exciting result, demonstrating that harnessing a patient’s own immune system can successfully attack prostate cancer,” said Dr. Eric Small, cancer specialist at the University of California at San Francisco. “Now we have more confidence that the initial results we saw were real.”

TAGS: Dendreon Corp., prostate cancer, Provenge, treatment

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