Activating the patient's own immune system
Every cancer is different and requires a differentiated analysis and personalized treatment. We therefore plan an individual IOZK immunotherapy for each patient and draw up a coordinated treatment plan.
The aim of IOZK immunotherapy is to activate the body's own immune defenses against the tumour.
Personalized medicine - the right therapy for every patient
IOZK immunotherapy is an immuno-oncology therapy. Immuno-oncological therapy has revolutionized the treatment of tumour diseases. It has established itself as the fourth pillar alongside surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy.
The IOZK offers the best conditions for optimal immunotherapy. We bring together what promises good chances of success: a team of experts - consisting of doctors and scientists - and a form of therapy specially developed by us, which is planned and put together for each individual patient: IOZK immunotherapy.
The basis is a comprehensive laboratory analysis of the immune system. On this basis, our medical team decides which treatment method and follow-up care are most suitable.
In our approach, we include all currently available methods of cancer treatment: from immunological treatment to classic chemotherapy. The result is that every patient receives a therapy that is tailored to them and therefore personalized.
IOZK immunotherapy consists of various forms of therapy, such as virotherapy, hyperthermia, vaccination therapy and therapy with checkpoint inhibitors. All solid tumors can be treated with this multiple therapy approach, for example brain tumors, breast, colon, lung, skin or prostate cancer.
Targeted against the tumor - with almost no side effects
If the IO-VAC® vaccine succeeds in triggering an immune response against the cancer, this is specifically directed against certain characteristics on the tumor cells that healthy cells do not have. This means that healthy cells are not damaged, so that the therapy has virtually no side effects.
The initial treatment usually lasts five weeks. In principle, IOZK therapy can be started at any time during the course of the disease. However, the optimal time for treatment is as soon as possible after complete removal of the tumor. The IOZK should therefore be contacted before an operation so that the patient's own tumor material can be obtained for immunotherapy if necessary.
The IOZK team continuously examines the patient and their immune functions. Depending on the patient's condition and the course of therapy, further immunological treatments and possibly additional therapies may be used.
In numerous studies, researchers have been able to show that immuno-oncological therapies are effective and comparatively well tolerated across all indications, i.e. for a wide range of tumor types.
Dr. Wilfried Stücker
Personalized IOZK immunotherapy can lead to an immune response that is specifically directed against tumour components and therefore does not destroy healthy cells. We achieve this by combining different forms of therapy.
IO-VAC® vaccine
The basis and decisive component of IOZK immunotherapy is the patient-specific vaccine IO-VAC® developed in our laboratory. Put simply, in our laboratory we combine an oncolytic virus and the patient's own tumor antigens with the patient's own dendritic cells to create the personally tailored IO-VAC® vaccine. This can subsequently activate T-cells which, under certain circumstances, destroy tumor cells or inhibit their growth.
The IOZK is the only institution in Europe to have a manufacturing authorization according to § 13 AMG for an anti-tumor dendritic cell vaccine, dendritic cells cultivated from the patient's own monocytes, which are loaded with tumor antigens from a lysate of the patient's own tumor cells with immunologically effective danger signals originating from the Newcastle disease virus.
Virotherapy
Virotherapy is an integral part of IOZK immunotherapy. Oncolytic viruses such as the Newcastle Disease Virus (NDV) are viruses that can infect and destroy tumor cells. When the virus multiplies in tumor cells, the immune system can become aware of the tumor cells. The viral infection enables the tumour cells to be recognized as dangerous. This is an important prerequisite for the immune response against tumor cells.
Hyperthermia
Modulated electrohyperthermia uses electromagnetic waves to heat and stimulate tumor cells. As a result, these show certain danger signals on their surface, which can also provoke and intensify an immune reaction.
Moderate whole-body hyperthermia uses infrared radiation to produce a fever-like increase in core body temperature. This passive increase in temperature can stimulate immune cells, which are responsible for tumor defense, among other things.
Therapy with checkpoint inhibitors
Checkpoints are the immune system's control mechanisms against excessive activation. Tumors "abuse" these immune checkpoints in order to override the immune defence directed against them. This is where checkpoint inhibitors come in: they inhibit these blocked signaling pathways, in a sense releasing the brakes on the immune cells and thus giving the body's defenses the opportunity to fight the tumor again. However, PD-1 checkpoint inhibitors are only effective if there is already an immune response against the tumor.
Modulation of the tumor microenvironment
The tumor microenvironment is the framework of various connective tissue cells in which the tumor cells are embedded. It interacts directly with the tumor cells and influences their growth and the effectiveness of immunotherapy. IOZK immunotherapy therefore takes into account and influences the tumor microenvironment.
Micronutrient and vitamin optimization
In order to function properly, the immune system must be adequately supplied with micronutrients and vitamins. We administer these as required to optimize the immunological response.
IOZK immunotherapy for different types of cancer
The multiple therapy approach of IOZK immunotherapy can be used to treat solid tumors such as:
- Prostate cancer
- Brain tumors
- Colorectal cancer
- Breast cancer
