Panagiotis J. Vlachostergios
Therapeutic cancer vaccines harness the adaptive immune system to eradicate malignancies by targeting tumor-specific antigens. This review charts the evolution of cancer vaccine platforms-from shared tumor-associated antigens (TAAs) and dendritic cell (DC) vaccines to next-generation neoantigen-messenger ribonucleic acid (mRNA) vaccines-highlighting advances in vaccine delivery, antigen discovery, computational prediction, and translational efficacy. We explore cutting-edge clinical data, including long-lived T-cell memory and promising outcomes in various cancer types, including pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC), melanoma, head and neck cancers, renal cell carcinoma (RCC), and others. We address critical challenges, including tumor heterogeneity, manufacturing scalability, biomarker development, and regulatory frameworks, and propose an integrated translational ecosystem to accelerate the adoption of personalized cancer vaccines.