New trends in the development of cancer vaccines

Recent advances in understanding of the molecular mechanisms of antigen processing and presentation, and the identification of tumor-associated antigens in melanoma and other cancers, have stimulated the development of a new generation cancer vaccines. This review summarizes the most recent approaches for the design of safe and more effective vaccines for cancer. Peptide-based vaccines are safe and can be synthesized with high purity and reproducibility. Recombinant viruses encoding tumor-associated antigens allow efficient delivery and precise control over the form and the quantity of the delivered antigens. DNA-based vaccines induce long-lasting immune responses and are considered very safe. Antigen-loaded dendritic cells, and the use of newly developed adjuvants are also very promising new approaches. In this review, we also discuss the possible clinical applications and future directions for vaccine development.