Patients with intermediate-stage primary liver cancer have shown significantly improved outcomes in a groundbreaking clinical trial led by researchers at the University of Birmingham. The ImmunoTACE study, funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) and published in Clinical Cancer Research, demonstrated that a vaccine made from patients’ own dendritic cells (DC) can extend the period without tumour progression when combined with standard treatment.
Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most common and deadly forms of liver cancer worldwide, ranking among the leading causes of cancer-related death. Standard treatment often involves transarterial chemoembolisation (TACE), which blocks the blood vessels feeding the tumour while delivering chemotherapy. The ImmunoTACE trial, the first of its kind, tested whether a personalised DC vaccine could strengthen immune responses against the cancer when administered alongside this standard approach.
The study recruited 48 patients across Birmingham Health Partners (BHP) member organisations, including University Hospitals Birmingham, Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust, Aintree University Hospital and Clatterbridge. Patients were randomised to receive either standard treatment alone or in combination with the DC vaccine. In the experimental group, the average time to tumour progression was 18 months, compared with only 10 months for those who received standard treatment alone. These results highlight the potential of immunotherapy to transform outcomes for a cancer where treatment options remain limited.
Professor David Adams, Chief Investigator of the study, Emeritus Professor of Hepatology at the University of Birmingham and past Director of Birmingham Health Partners, said: “The results from this phase 2 trial are very promising and offer a potential new treatment option for patients with primary liver cancer, one of the highest causes of cancer-related death worldwide. As far as we know, ImmunoTACE is the first controlled clinical trial to show that a cell-based vaccine using lab-grown dendritic cells can improve patient outcomes with liver cancer. The results warrant further investigation and could in future offer much needed hope and a better treatment option for patients.”
The vaccine was developed by expanding dendritic cells taken from each patient’s white blood cells. These were cultured in a specialist laboratory for eight days alongside proteins derived from cancer cells, effectively training the immune system to recognise and target the tumour. Once prepared, the DC vaccine was administered at the same time as TACE and continued monthly for three additional doses. By presenting tumour antigens in this way, the vaccine prompts immune killer cells to seek out and destroy cancer cells bearing the same markers.
Dendritic cells play a crucial role in orchestrating the body’s immune defence, but in cancer patients they often become “exhausted” and remain trapped within tumours rather than activating killer cells in the lymph nodes. By restoring their function, DC vaccines aim to reawaken anti-tumour immunity. The Birmingham trial provides the strongest evidence yet that this strategy could be both affordable and effective for HCC patients, potentially opening up a new therapeutic pathway.
Dr Yuk Ting Ma, lead author of the study, Associate Clinical Professor at the University of Birmingham and an Honorary Consultant in Hepatobiliary Oncology at University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust, said: “These are very promising findings that demonstrate the potential use of dendritic cell vaccines in a widely prevalent and hard to treat cancer. With our approach to developing the vaccine, focusing on stimulation with multiple tumour antigens, we have shown a strong signal that we believe warrants testing in larger trials in patients with liver cancer. Dendritic cell vaccines also represent a potential additional immune therapy to add to current checkpoint inhibitors. Future studies will look at whether adding DC vaccination to standard immunotherapy can derive better outcomes for patient with HCC who show only modest responses to current checkpoint inhibitor drugs.”
As immunotherapy continues to revolutionise cancer care, this trial places Birmingham and its partners at the forefront of developing novel, patient-specific treatments. The results underline the importance of collaborative clinical research in tackling cancers with poor survival rates and limited treatment options. With further studies, dendritic cell vaccines may one day become a vital addition to the therapeutic arsenal against liver cancer, offering renewed hope to patients and families affected by this devastating disease.
Read the original article: https://www.birminghamhealthpartners.co.uk/adding-dendritic-cell-vaccine-to-liver-cancer-therapy-slows-disease-progression/
