First results on the DCVax phase III trial: raising more questions than providing answers

Recently, the long-awaited report on efficacy data of the DCVax trial has appeared in the Journal of Translational Medicine.¹ Patients and physicians alike are eager to critically evaluate the first results of this important trial, which is one of the earliest major attempts to improve outcome in patients with glioblastoma using immunotherapy based on an autologous tumor lysate-pulsed dendritic cell vaccine (DCVax). It is not only one of the first randomized phase III trials of its kind, but in light of recent successes with cancer immunotherapies outside neuro-oncology, there is a huge interest in any form of immune treatment for glioma patients. Any report is highly relevant, not in the least as the treatment is offered commercially to patients, at high cost, and without the effectiveness of the treatment being known to date. In the interplay between concept-based hopes and urgent need for effective treatments, it is of the utmost importance that outcome data are shared with the community.