A recent study including 510 young males (aged 10–15) showed an equally high degree of immunogenicity to girls for all four types of HPV included in the quadrivalent vaccine [22] and preliminary data from the quadrivalent vaccine in males show a 90% protection for external genital lesions associated with HPV types 6, 11, 16, 18 [23]. Definitive data on the efficacy of the HPV vaccine for oropharyngeal cancer await long-term follow-up of vaccinated females. Oropharyngeal cancer carries a considerable economic burden. US data for oropharyngeal and mouth cancer for 2003 show direct medical costs of US$33,020 per case and lifetime costs for all new
cases of US$38.1 million [24]. Cost-benefit analysis needs to take account of reports indicating that vaccinating females may confer some benefit for heterosexual men; also the substantial morbidity and mortality associated with HPV-related
head and neck cancer. Nutlin-3a cell line Despite a favourable outcome compared with HPV-negative cancer, the 5-year overall survival for patients with HPV-related head and neck cancer is still only about 70% [25]. The prevention of HPV-related head and neck cancer by vaccination has the potential for major social and economic benefits for the Australian community. This study was supported by grants from the Diagnostics and Technology Branch of the Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing I-BET151 concentration with the support of Cancer Australia, The Cure Cancer Foundation Australia and Sydney Head and Neck Cancer Institute. “
“For pandemic viral infections, like 2009 H1N1 swine flu, it is highly desirable to develop vaccines that can be easily adapted to the new circulating strains and can be rapidly produced and deployed in a cost-efficient manner. The properties of DNA
vaccines make them good candidates secondly for achieving these goals. In addition to their logistical advantages, they provide a cellular component to the immune response, whereas inactivated viral or protein based vaccines, which are currently used for seasonal influenza vaccines, predominantly induce humoral responses. DNA vaccines against influenza viruses have been successfully tested in a number of animal models and have provided protection in a phase-Ib challenge study in human volunteers [1]. DNA electroporation has been shown to further increase cellular and humoral immune responses for a variety of antigens in different animal models [2], [3], [4], [5] and [6] and is currently being evaluated in clinical trials [7]. Zheng et al. recently reported protection against an H5N1 avian influenza challenge in mice after a single immunization by DNA electroporation. Vaccinated mice had reduced viral loads in the lung and higher survival rates compared to unvaccinated mice and this protection was correlated with early antibody production and cellular responses [8].