title: Recent advances in immunotherapy for the treatment of prostate cancer.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Prostate cancer vaccines attempt to induce cancer-specific systemic immune responses and represent a new class of targeted therapies, many of which are non-toxic. Several vaccine technologies are in development.
  
  
  METHODS
  An autologous antigen presenting cell vaccine loaded with prostate acid phosphatase conjugated with GM-CSF, sipuleucel-T confers a survival advantage in men with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC) and is now FDA approved based on the IMPACT trial. A poxvirus-based vaccine, PROSTVAC-VF TRICOM targeting prostate-specific antigen (PSA), has demonstrated improved survival in a randomized Phase II trial of patients with metastatic CRPC. Novel T lymphocyte checkpoint inhibitors of cytotoxic T lymphocyte antigen 4 and programmed death-1 are also emerging. Recognition of improved survival without an earlier clinical signal of activity by conventional criteria has led to new guidelines to evaluate immunotherapeutic agents. The clinical benefit of combining vaccines with chemotherapy, radiotherapy and other immunotherapeutic and biologic agents is being evaluated in the context of disappointing results of combination GVAX vaccine and docetaxel chemotherapy.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  To build on the success of early phase trials, efforts must be made to optimize vaccine approaches and patient selection.
authors.affiliation: Texas Oncology, Houston, Texas, USA.
authors.forename: Guru
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Sonpavde
authors.forename: Neeraj
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Agarwal
authors.forename: Toni K
authors.initials: TK
authors.lastname: Choueiri
authors.forename: Philip W
authors.initials: PW
authors.lastname: Kantoff
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D019496:Cancer Vaccines / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D006801:Humans; D007167:Immunotherapy; D008297:Male; D011471:Prostatic Neoplasms / Q000276:immunology / Q000628:therapy*
chemical_list: D019496:Cancer Vaccines