Combining a special vaccine with immunotherapy for recurrent ovarian cancer
Official title: A phase I/II study of combined therapy with Th17-inducing dendritic cells and pembrolizumab in patients with recurrent epithelial ovarian cancer
Funded at Mayo Clinic Jacksonville · NIH-11114072 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This research combines a unique vaccine with an immunotherapy drug to help patients with ovarian cancer that has returned.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Mayo Clinic Jacksonville NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Jacksonville, United States) |
| Project start | July 1, 2023 |
| Project end | June 30, 2028 |
| Funding year | 2025 |
| Award (this year) | $639,109 |
| NIH project number | 5R01CA276313-03 |
| Project ID | NIH-11114072 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
This opportunity is for patients who have recurrent epithelial ovarian cancer.
✕Less likely to help
Patients whose ovarian cancer has not returned or who are not suitable for immunotherapy may not benefit from this specific approach.
What this research studies
Ovarian cancer can be challenging to treat, especially when it comes back. Immunotherapy drugs, which help your body's immune system fight cancer, haven't always worked well on their own for this type of cancer. This project aims to boost the immune system's ability to fight ovarian cancer by first giving a special vaccine that targets cancer cells. This vaccine is designed to create a strong immune response, which we hope will then make the immunotherapy drug more effective in shrinking tumors.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this combined approach could offer a new and more effective treatment option for patients with recurrent ovarian cancer.
How similar studies have gone: A previous early-stage clinical trial of the vaccine alone showed that it successfully generated strong immune responses in nearly all ovarian cancer patients.
Where this research is happening
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Mayo Clinic Jacksonville
Jacksonville, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Knutson, Keith L. — Mayo Clinic Jacksonville
- Study coordinator: Knutson, Keith L.
Related research
Other NIH-funded projects on the same topics.
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TAG72 CAR-T therapy for recurrent epithelial ovarian cancer
A targeted CAR-T cell therapy delivered into the abdomen for women with recurrent epithelial ovarian cancer to attack cancer cells expressing TAG72.
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Liquid biopsy clues: plasma bacteria as early warning for epithelial ovarian cancer
A patient-friendly look at a new approach that uses tiny bacteria signals in blood to help detect ovarian cancer early.
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Understanding how cancer cells talk to the immune system and how to use that to treat ovarian cancer
This grant studies how aging-like changes in ovarian cancer cells drive harmful signals and tests new ways to block those signals to improve treatment.
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Targeting the immune system to help treat recurrent ovarian cancer
Aims to test a new approach that blocks a part of the immune system (complement) to boost anticancer immunity in people with recurrent ovarian cancer and fluid buildup.
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Th17-inducing vaccine plus pembrolizumab for recurrent ovarian cancer
A phase I/II study tests a vaccine that activates Th17 immune cells together with pembrolizumab to help fight recurrent ovarian cancer.
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CAR T-cell therapy targeting TAG72 for recurrent epithelial ovarian cancer
This trial tries a CAR T‑cell treatment that targets the TAG72 protein for people with recurrent epithelial ovarian cancer, given directly into the abdomen.
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.