Immunotherapy Melbourne Animal Cancer Care
Australia’s only centre offering a personalised, autologous cancer vaccine.
Immunotherapy harnesses the power of the immune system to detect and destroy cancer cells, offering a unique and innovative approach to treatment. Often referred to as a “cancer vaccine,” immunotherapy aims to stimulate the body’s natural defences to recognise and attack tumour cells that might otherwise go unnoticed.
Currently, there is a cancer vaccine available for animals that targets melanoma, and it has been successfully used in cases of advanced disease for many years. This vaccine is typically administered following surgery to remove the bulk of the tumour, which helps alleviate discomfort and any functional issues caused by the mass. The vaccine’s job is then to activate the immune system to hunt down and eliminate any remaining microscopic cancer cells that may have spread beyond the original tumour site.
In addition to the above, MARS specialist veterinary services are leading the way in Australia, providing a personalised, autologous vaccine from the patient’s own tumour tissue. MARS is the ONLY centre in Australia able to offer this vaccine. After surgical removal or biopsy of the tumour, the cancer cells are processed and repurposed in-house to develop a tailored vaccine, known as APAVAC (Autologous Peritumoral Autogenous Vaccine Against Cancer). The following cancers can be treated with the cancer vaccine: canine diffuse large B-cell lymphoma, canine indolent lymphoma, cat or dog osteosarcoma, melanoma, mast cell tumour, anal sac adenocarcinoma in dogs and cats, feline mammary carcinoma, etc.
Each vaccine is administered under the skin once weekly for the first month, followed by once monthly injections for another 4 doses. The treatment is very well tolerated without the need for regular blood testing as is required for chemotherapy and targeted treatments.
While not suitable for every patient, immunotherapy and vaccine-based treatments represent an exciting and rapidly evolving frontier in veterinary oncology. They can be especially beneficial when used as part of a multi-modal treatment plan, combining surgery, chemotherapy / targeted therapy to achieve the best possible outcome for each individual pet.