Neuroblastoma
Neuroblastoma is a childhood cancer that develops from immature nerve cells called neuroblastoma. In the United States, the annual incidence rate is about 700 cases, accounting for 6-10% of all childhood cancers, most commonly in infants and young children. Alfa Cytology is a world leader in the development of cancer vaccines. With our extensive experience and advanced platform, we can provide the best vaccine development services for neuroblastoma.
Introduction to Neuroblastoma
Neuroblastoma most commonly occurs in the adrenal gland but may also occur in the abdomen, chest, spine, or pelvis nerve tissue. Neuroblastoma is the most common solid tumor in children under the age of five, with varying degrees of invasiveness and diversity.
Mechanism of Neuroblastoma
Due to genetic mutations in developing nerve cells, uncontrolled growth and accumulation of immature nerve cells ultimately result in neuroblastoma. Multiple genetic abnormalities lead to heterogeneity of the solid tumor, affecting its behavior and response to therapy. The scope of this disease can range from slow-growing tumors with good outcomes to high-risk tumors with poor prognosis and strong invasiveness.
Fig. 1 The immunotherapeutic strategies of neuroblastoma. (Ahmed, T., 2022)
Therapies for Neuroblastoma
New therapies, combination therapies, and targeted drugs for neuroblastoma targeting different risk groups are continuously being developed. The main goal is to reduce therapy-related toxicity, optimize therapy outcomes, and improve the survival rate. Some noteworthy targets and therapies are shown in the table below.
| Target/Therapy | Description |
| ALK inhibitors | Drugs targeting the anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) pathway, such as crizotinib and lorlatinib, significantly affect ALK-mutated neuroblastoma. |
| Differentiation therapy | Retinoic acid derivatives, such as isotretinoin, can be used to induce and accelerate the maturation of developing neuroblastoma cells, thereby reducing proliferation and improving prognosis. |
| Immunotherapy | Immune checkpoint inhibitors, chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cell therapy, cancer vaccines, and antibody therapy targeting GD2, such as dinutuximab, can enhance the immune response against neuroblastoma. |
Neuroblastoma Vaccine Research and Development
Vaccine-based immunotherapy can potentially treat neuroblastoma by targeting and eliminating cancer cells by utilizing the human immune system. The research focus of developing neuroblastoma vaccines is to stimulate immune responses against tumor-specific antigens, mainly including the following.
Peptide-based vaccines present specific tumor-related peptides to activate the immune system's recognition and targeting of neuroblastoma cells.
Tumor-derived lysates containing a range of tumor antigens can be used to activate immune responses against neuroblastoma.
Fig. 2 Immunotherapy for neuroblastoma using mRNA vaccines. (Ahmed, T., 2022)
Our Service
Against neuroblastoma, Alfa Cytology provides various services related to vaccine development, including antigen recognition services, adjuvant and delivery system development services, and vaccine preclinical testing services.
Neuroblastoma remains a major challenge in pediatric oncology, requiring personalized treatment methods and innovative therapies to improve the prognosis of affected children. Alfa Cytology is committed to the research and development of therapeutic neuroblastoma vaccines, from the discovery of cancer antigens, and the development of different types of vaccines, to vaccine research for different cancer types, providing one-stop services. If you are interested in our service, please contact us for more information.
Reference
- Ahmed, T. (2022). Immunotherapy for neuroblastoma using mRNA vaccines. Adv. Cancer Biol. Metastat 4, 100033. doi:10.1016/j.adcanc.2022.100033