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Sep 23, 2008 2:33 pm US/Eastern
Vaccine Shows Promise In Fighting Lung Cancer
MIAMI (WBZ) ―
Just last year 213,000 people were diagnosed with lung cancer, the leading cancer killer. Now an experimental vaccine is showing promise in saving lives.
Lung cancer is so deadly because it's usually caught very late, leaving few treatment options. For most patients, the available treatments only prolong their life, not cure the cancer.
Researchers around the world are working on different versions of a lung cancer vaccine.
At the
Sylvester Cancer Center at the University of Miami, Dr. Eckhard Podack is trying to help the body cure itself. His vaccine revs up cells that defend the body known as killer cells.
"The vaccine therapy uses the immune system," Dr. Podack explained. "The killer cells are what we want to have because they will go to the tumor and kill the tumor cells."
In a
clinical trial of 20 terminally ill people, some lung cancers were significantly reduced giving a handful of patients a few extra years.
Dr. Podack is now about to test a new version of the vaccine. He believes his work will lead to an effective treatment and possibly a cure for cancer's number one killer.
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