Introduction: Cancer remains a major source of disease burden worldwide. Although cancer vaccines have been developed, most currently available cancer vaccines have limited therapeutic efficacy. Recent research using novel sequencing and bioinformatic tools has led scientists to realize that each tumor harbors a unique set of genetic mutations that can manifest as tumor-specific neoantigens. Therefore, it would be useful to develop personalized cancer vaccines that target neoantigens, which might improve the efficacy of these cancer treatments.
Areas covered: This review covers cancer vaccine development and the emerging field of personalized cancer vaccines, with a discussion of future clinical trials for this promising treatment strategy.
Expert opinion: Developing vaccines to treat tumors is one of the most promising and exciting fields in cancer research. However, cancer vaccines have shown limited efficacy in clinical trials for several decades, which may be related to the unique and complex processes underlying tumor development and progression. Recent studies have indicated that tumors express highly specific neoantigens, which are distinct from self-antigens. Thus, developing cancer vaccines that target these tumor-specific neoantigens is a promising strategy for developing personalized cancer vaccines.
Keywords: Cancer vaccines; mutations; neoantigens; personalized treatment; tumor.