NIH -- Researchers have shown that vaccinating mice with a modified form of a virus containing proteins from breast cancer cells can kill large breast cancer tumors and tumors that have spread to the lungs. The rodent model of cancer used in this study closely resembles a type of breast cancer seen in humans called HER2-positive. Although other cancer vaccines have shown activity in the treatment of very small tumors, their ability to influence large, established tumors, such as many HER2-positive breast cancers, has proven difficult. The study, led by researchers at the National Cancer Institute (NCI), part of the National Institutes of Health, appeared in the March 15, 2008, issue of Cancer Research.
