I asked my husband, who has a doctorate in immunology, to take a quick 
look at the breast cancer vaccine story. His response:

I reviewed the paper and although they have shown that inducing an 
autoimmune response against a normal protein can reduce the incidence of 
cancer in mice, my biggest concern with this type of approach is 
specificity of the immune response. Unfortunately this is 
subject to errors in a living system.   The T cell response is fairly 
specific to peptides within the original target protein but not 
absolutely perfect. Over time or in certain individuals, the specificity 
of the  immune response could vary and result in a reaction against 
other albumin proteins in the body.  This could be very serious indeed.  
I think this treatment would be valid for high risk women past 
childbearing age but it will be another 10 years before we see this type 
of therapy available.

Arly Helm, MS, IBCLC
It's springtime in the Sierras!

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