Canine Cancer: A Preventive Cancer Vaccine Is Being Tested in Dogs in the United States

The University of Arizona has received a grant of more than $6 million to test the effectiveness of a preventive cancer vaccine for dogs. After ten years of research, the researchers have identified a vaccine target common to all types of canine cancers. With a prevalence of 40% in certain dog breeds, cancerous tumors remain the leading cause of death in dogs. Furthermore, if the vaccine proves effective in animals, it could be tested in humans.   The clinical trial includes 800 healthy, middle-aged pet dogs, which will receive either the new vaccine—called the multivalent frameshift peptide (FSP) vaccine—or a placebo. They will remain with their owners and undergo a clinical examination every six months and a complete health checkup throughout the duration of the trial. Since tumor growth is much faster in dogs, the trial is expected to last five years or less, whereas it would take 15 to 20 years in humans. The efficacy of the experimental vaccine has already been successfully tested in mice, as has its safety for dogs. If its veterinary use proves successful in dogs, a vaccine with a comparable composition will be evaluated in humans, who develop cancers similar to those in dogs and whose immune systems respond in the same way. The success of this trial should reinforce the use of FSP vaccines to prevent cancers in their very earliest stages and lead to the development of a canine cancer vaccine, followed by a human vaccine in a second phase. Compared to other cancer vaccines, FSP vaccines are particularly promising because they can target many types of cancer cells. According to the latest statistics from the World Health Organization (WHO), cancer causes approximately 7.9 million deaths worldwide each year, primarily in developing countries (5.5 million deaths). A preventive vaccine would also be less expensive than current cancer therapies.