Arizona Senator, John McCain, had a brain tumor, known as Glioblastoma, removed on Friday in Phoenix, Arizona. Roswell Park Cancer Institute developed a new clinical trial to help patients with this form of an aggressive brain cancer, known as Glioblastoma. The trial involves a vaccine, called SurVaxM. The vaccine was developed by Roswell Park faculty, Robert Fenstermaker, MD, and Michael Ciesielski, PhD. The therapy is designed to stimulate a patient's immune system to kill cancer cells.
The rare type of brain cancer is the most common and aggressive type of brain tumor. Glioblastoma is a brain tumor of abnormal cells creating a mass growing in the brain.
The clinical trial is in its’ second phase, which will asses the effectiveness of the 50 patients who receive the vaccine. If the current phase proves successful, Roswell Park would seek permission from the FDA to more forward with the third phase of the study.
The American Cancer Society estimates about 24,000 malignant tumors are diagnosed each year. Symptoms of the cancer include double vision, headaches, and seizures, according to the ACS.
The developers of the trial say the prognosis for Glioblastoma on average is 15 months, but could be different for every diagnosed individual.
The possibility exists to study it in other types of cancers and make it more broadly available in the future," Fenstermaker said.
Donations for the study are funded by the Roswell Park Alliance Foundation.
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