PERSONALIZED CANCER VACCINE STUDY AT OUR LADY OF MERCY MEDICAL CENTER MAY HELP CANCER PATIENTS FIGHT DISEASE

A new approach that uses a patients own immune system to attack their cancer is being evaluated by Peter H. Wiernik, M.D., director of the Our Lady of Mercy Medical Centers Comprehensive Cancer Center in the Bronx, New York.

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Contact: Fred Yaeger
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PERSONALIZED CANCER VACCINES MAY HELP
CANCER PATIENTS FIGHT DISEASE
Our Lady of Mercy Cancer Center Enrolling Patients In Lymphoma Vaccine Study

Help may be on the way for cancer patients suffering from non-Hodgkins Lymphoma (NHL), the sixth most common cancer, with approximately 300,000 cases in the U.S., and the sixth most common cause of cancer death.

A new approach that uses a patients own immune system to attack their cancer is being evaluated by Peter H. Wiernik, M.D., director of the Our Lady of Mercy Medical Centers Comprehensive Cancer Center in the Bronx, New York. The Cancer Center is a participant in a clinical research trial studying Favid, a personalized cancer vaccine made individually from each patients lymphoma. The vaccine is designed to recruit and train the bodys own immune system to identify, target and destroy lymphoma cells. Personalized vaccines represent a new approach to treating cancer and may help lymphoma patients achieve lasting remission.

Dr. Wiernik is now enrolling patients in this Phase II clinical trial that studies Favid in combination with Rituxan® for patients with low-grade or follicular non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (fNHL). This trial is open to:
1) Patients who have not received any prior treatment for their lymphoma;
2) Patients who have relapsed following a previous response to chemotherapy
and/or Rituxan;
3) Patients who received prior chemotherapy but never responded to their treatment.

The study we are conducting enables patients with one of the most common types of cancer, low-grade non-Hodgkins lymphoma, to be treated with a patient-specific cancer vaccine along with an effective and approved regimen of Rituxan without requiring prior chemotherapy," said Dr. Wiernik. We are pleased to offer patients access to this investigational and novel treatment for cancer."

Patients enrolled in the study first receive Rituxan, an approved lymphoma treatment that can be administered at the patient's own oncologist's office. Approximately eight weeks after completing Rituxan, patients start monthly injections of Favid for six months. Favid, following Rituxan, is being tested to see if it can specifically stimulate the body's immune response against remaining lymphoma cells.
For additional information on participation and eligibility in the lymphoma vaccine study, call the Our Lady of Mercys Comprehensive Cancer Center at 718/920-1100.

About Our Lady of Mercy Medical Center
The Comprehensive Cancer Center at Our Lady of Mercy Medical Center offers a range of opportunities for cancer patients in the region. This Center of Excellence" combines the latest advances in the treatment and care of cancer patients with research facilities dedicated to advancing the understanding of cancer and improving treatment modalities.

Our Lady of Mercy Medical Center is a University Hospital of New York Medical College and is a member of the Catholic Health Care System.