Cancer cells can be recognized as foreign by the immune system if those cancer cells are presented to the immune system in a manner that “breaks immune tolerance.” Decades of research in mouse and human models have shown that tumor cells are very much like normal cells in that they express self-antigens that the body is taught to ignore early in development and throughout life. An immunosuppressive environment produced by growing tumors promotes an immune response toward the tumor that is ineffective, allowing the tumor to grow unchecked

An appropriately designed vaccine, like K9-ACV, can break this cycle of tumor immunosuppression, generating tumor-specific immune cells that have effective anti-tumor reactivity, improving survival and quality of life in veterinary patients. K9-ACV is specifically designed to make the patient’s tumor or disease appear foreign, thus inducing an effective anti-tumor immune response, like an immune response against viral or bacterial infections. This is the basic theory behind immunotherapy for the treatment of cancer.

Using the therapeutic approach of immunotherapy, the scientists at Ardent Animal Health have developed a cancer vaccine, created personally for your pet that can be incorporated in your pet’s cancer treatment plan. K9-ACV can be used to treat your pet’s cancer independently or in combination with other traditional treatment methods such as chemotherapy or radiation.