UPMC will soon begin testing a vaccine for breast cancer in the hopes of preventing one of the most common cancers in women.
The first phase of the clinical trial will follow women diagnosed with an early form of breast cancer called DCIS.
On the Big K Morning Show, Dr. Olivera Finn said the trial will start with ten DCIS patients and expand to 50. She said they will pay close attention to the patient's immune response.
"Between the diagnosis and surgery, we would like to enact the trial, give them a vaccine. It's three shots two weeks apart to generate a very strong immune response against the tumor," she said.
The women recruited for the trials at the Hillman Cancer Center could get the breast cancer vaccine as early as the end of the year.
Funding came from Wexford-based nonprofit, Glimmer of Hope.
"We are hoping to use it to prevent cancer so that no women ever has to hear that diagnosis," said Finn.