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Neoadjuvant Vaccination Provides Superior Protection against Tumor Relapse following Surgery Compared with Adjuvant Vaccination

Department of Pathology and Molecular Medicine, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada

Requests for reprints: Jonathan L. Bramson, Department of Pathology and Molecular Medicine, McMaster University, Room MDCL-5025, 1200 Main Street West, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada L8N 3Z5. Phone: 905-525-9140; Fax: 905-522-6750; E-mail: bramsonj{at}mcmaster.ca.

Key Words: tumor • surgery • vaccination • T cells

Tumors that recur following surgical resection of melanoma are typically metastatic and associated with poor prognosis. Using the murine B16F10 melanoma and a robust antimelanoma vaccine, we evaluated immunization as a tool to improve tumor-free survival following surgery. We investigated the utility of vaccination in both neoadjuvant and adjuvant settings. Surprisingly, neoadjuvant vaccination was far superior and provided 100% protection against tumor relapse. Neoadjuvant vaccination was associated with enhanced frequencies of tumor-specific T cells within the tumor and the tumor-draining lymph nodes following resection. We also observed increased infiltration of antigen-specific T cells into the area of surgery. This method should be amenable to any vaccine platform and can be readily extended to the clinic. [Cancer Res 2009;69(9):3979–85]