Cancer Vaccine Institute News

Breast cancer is one of the most common cancers and the second leading cause of cancer-related death among women. While advances in targeted therapies have improved patient outcomes for several breast cancer subtypes, metastatic triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) remains one of the most challenging forms of the disease to treat. Although immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) combined with chemotherapy have improved survival for some patients with metastatic TNBC, this benefit

Dr. Nora Disis, Director of the Cancer Vaccine Institute (CVI), spoke with FOX 13’s Claire Anderson to share encouraging clinical trial results and discuss the growing promise of breast cancer vaccines. The CVI is developing breast cancer vaccines that can program the body’s own immune system to recognize and kill breast cancer cells. These immune cells are capable of remaining in the body for years, providing long-term protection from cancer coming back. Dr. Disis explains,

The Cancer Vaccine Institute (CVI) is advancing the emerging field of cancer research, developing vaccines to intercept cancer before it becomes invasive. We have developed WOKVAC, a DNA-based vaccine designed to target three proteins - HER2, IGFBP-2, and IGF-1R - highly expressed in most Ductal Carcinoma In Situ (DCIS), a preinvasive form of breast cancer. Although not immediately life-threatening, 20% of DCIS lesions may progress to invasive cancer. Patients diagnosed with

Photo Credits: Fred Hutch Dr. Natasha (Tasha) Hunter , Cancer Vaccine Institute Director of Clinical Trials, has been selected as the recipient of the 2026 Athena Endowed Award for Excellence in Breast Cancer Research. The Athena Award was established to recognize an early career researcher making the greatest contribution during the past year toward advancing research to improve the prevention, detection, diagnosis and/or treatment of breast cancer. Read more about Dr. Hunte

Dr. Ying Liu presented this study at the 2025 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium At the UW Cancer Vaccine Institute, we are working to develop vaccines that train the immune system to recognize and eliminate cancer. At the 2025 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium, we shared new data comparing two of our HER2-targeted therapeutic vaccine platforms for people with advanced HER2-positive breast cancer. About 20% of all breast cancers overexpress the HER2 protein, which can make