By using this site, you agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
Accept
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
  • Health
    • Mental Health
  • Policy and Law
    • Global Healthcare
    • Medical Ethics
  • Medical Innovations
  • News
  • Wellness
  • Tech
Search
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Reading: Immunovaccine Raises Money, Has 3 Cancer Vaccine Trials in the Works
Share
Notification Show More
Font ResizerAa
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
Font ResizerAa
Search
Follow US
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Health Works Collective > Business > Finance > Immunovaccine Raises Money, Has 3 Cancer Vaccine Trials in the Works
BusinessFinance

Immunovaccine Raises Money, Has 3 Cancer Vaccine Trials in the Works

Deanna Pogorelc
Deanna Pogorelc
Share
3 Min Read
SHARE
ovarian tumor cell

Granulosa cell tumor of the ovary

ovarian tumor cell

Granulosa cell tumor of the ovary

Analysts say there’s a multibillion-dollar market up for the taking for companies who figure out how to turn on the immune system to fight tumor cells and delay the progression of cancer. Canadian company Immunovaccine wants a piece of that market and recently said it’s reached an important milestone in getting there.

Immunovaccine just raised $4.2 million in private funding. Combined with a $5 million loan from its home province, Nova Scotia, and $32 million from government agencies and research institutions, Immunovaccine says it’s now funded into 2015, including the launch of three Phase 2 clinical trials next year.

At the core of its pipeline is DepoVax, an adjuvant platform with the potential to provide controlled and prolonged exposure of antigens and adjuvant to the immune system by creating a depot at the site of vaccination.

“Normal vaccines get cleared from site of injection within hours or days. You have to repeatedly vaccinate, and even then you might not generate a strong immune response,” Chief Operating Officer Marc Mansour explained during a recent interview with MedCity News. “We’re forcing the immune system to process it over days and weeks instead of hours. If you have the right immune activators, you end up with a stronger immune response.”

So far, Immunovaccine has advanced two vaccines through Phase I clinical studies. The first, DPX-Survivac, targets the protein survivin, which is broadly expressed across many tumor cell types. By combining the vaccine with at least one immune modulator, Immunovaccine is hoping to delay or prevent cancer recurrence in ovarian cancer and glioblastoma patients in two Phase 2 studies that will start next year. The strategy is to use the vaccine to mop up leftover circulating tumor cells in the blood after chemotherapy, Mansour said.

The second vaccine, DPX-0907, is also on track to enter a Phase 1/2 trial with breast and ovarian cancer patients in Italy. This vaccine is designed to train the body’s T-cells to recognize the multiple antigens incorporated in the vaccine, so that they recognize and attack cancer cells while leaving healthy cells unharmed.

Mansour said the immunotherapy approach is generating a lot of excitement among Big Pharmas, citing Merck, AstraZeneca, Bristol-Myers Squibb and Roche as examples. Several promising proof-of-concept trials over the past few years seem to have restored hope in the ability of drug developers to be able to stimulate an immune response against cancer.

Meanwhile, the Halifax, Nova Scotia, company is also advancing a pipeline of vaccines against infectious diseases including malaria, respiratory syncytial virus and anthrax.

[Image credit: Flickr user Ed Uthman]

TAGGED:cancer vaccineImmunovaccine
Share This Article
Facebook Copy Link Print
Share

Stay Connected

1.5kFollowersLike
4.5kFollowersFollow
2.8kFollowersPin
136kSubscribersSubscribe

Latest News

Guide To Pursuing a Career in Nursing as a Foreigner in the USA
Collaboration Is the Prescription for Better Patient Care
Health
October 20, 2025
Epidemiological Health Benefits
Personal and Epidemiological Health Benefits of Blood Pressure Management
Health
October 13, 2025
Traumatic Brain Injuries
Understanding Traumatic Brain Injuries: What Families Need to Know
Policy & Law
October 10, 2025
Remote Monitoring touchpoints
Remote Monitoring Touchpoints Patients Will Actually Follow
Technology
October 9, 2025

You Might also Like

Dr Paul Rosen
Health ReformHospital Administration

What Would Empathy-Based Healthcare Look Like?

January 23, 2015

MedStar SiTEL Achieves Accreditation by SSH

May 16, 2014
BusinessNews

What To Know About Nutritional Supplement Packaging Safety

November 1, 2019

First HHS Innovation Fellowships’ Meeting Focuses on New Measures of Quality in Healthcare

December 11, 2012
Subscribe
Subscribe to our newsletter to get our newest articles instantly!
Follow US
© 2008-2025 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
Welcome Back!

Sign in to your account

Username or Email Address
Password

Lost your password?