Adenovirus-based cancer vaccines: a systematic review of clinical trials evidence.
7 affiliations
- 1Department of Medical Biotechnology, Faculty of Advanced Medical Sciences, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran.
- 2Student Research Committee, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran.
- 3Research Center for Evidence-based Medicine, Iranian EBM Centre: A JBI Centre of Excellence, Faculty of Medicine, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran.
- 4Department of Medical Biotechnology, School of Advanced Technologies in Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
- 5Department of Virology, Faculty of Medicine, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran.
- 6Department of Medical Biotechnology, Faculty of Advanced Medical Sciences, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran. [email protected].
- 7Cancer Gene Therapy Research Center, Zanjan University of Medical Sciences, Zanjan, Iran. [email protected].
Abstract
Adenovirus based vectors are commonly used as platforms for therapeutic cancer vaccines due to their high transduction efficiency, large genetic payload capacity, and intrinsic immunostimulatory properties. This systematic review evaluates the safety, immunogenicity, and clinical efficacy of adenovirus-based cancer vaccines in human clinical trials. A comprehensive literature search was conducted according to PRISMA guidelines across PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, EMBASE, and ClinicalTrials.gov up to February 2026. Twenty clinical trials met the inclusion criteria. Adenoviral vaccines, primarily based on human Ad5 and chimpanzee-derived vectors, were used to deliver tumor-associated antigens and neoantigens. Across studies, these vaccines demonstrated a favorable safety profile, with predominantly mild-to-moderate (grade 1-2) adverse events such as injection-site reactions, flu-like symptoms, and fatigue, while severe toxicities were rare. Immunogenicity outcomes were consistent, with most trials reporting strong antigen-specific CD8⁺ and CD4⁺ T-cell responses. However, clinical efficacy remained limited when used as monotherapy, with modest objective response rates but evidence of disease stabilization and improved survival in some combination strategies. Despite encouraging immunogenicity and safety, the overall clinical benefit of adenoviral vaccines remains constrained by tumor immune evasion and pre-existing vector immunity. Future large-scale randomized trials and rational combination approaches are warranted to enhance their therapeutic potential.
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BibTeX
@article{kamalkazemi2026adenovirusbased,
title = {{Adenovirus-based cancer vaccines: a systematic review of clinical trials evidence.}},
author = {Elham Kamalkazemi and Hanieh Salehi-Pourmehr and Babak Negahdari and Reza Salahlou and Hossein Bannazadeh Baghi and Fariba Pashazadeh and Effat Alizadeh and Nasser Hashemi Goradel},
journal = {Infectious agents and cancer},
year = {2026},
month = aug,
doi = {10.1186/s13027-026-00784-1},
url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42972378},
note = {CC BY-NC-ND},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Adenovirus-based cancer vaccines: a systematic review of clinical trials evidence.
AU - Elham Kamalkazemi
AU - Hanieh Salehi-Pourmehr
AU - Babak Negahdari
AU - Reza Salahlou
AU - Hossein Bannazadeh Baghi
AU - Fariba Pashazadeh
AU - Effat Alizadeh
AU - Nasser Hashemi Goradel
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/08/05
JO - Infectious agents and cancer
DO - 10.1186/s13027-026-00784-1
UR - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42972378
AB - Adenovirus based vectors are commonly used as platforms for therapeutic cancer vaccines due to their high transduction efficiency, large genetic payload capacity, and intrinsic immunostimulatory properties. This systematic review evaluates the safety, immunogenicity, and clinical efficacy of adenovirus-based cancer vaccines in human clinical trials. A comprehensive literature search was conducted according to PRISMA guidelines across PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, EMBASE, and ClinicalTrials.gov up to February 2026. Twenty clinical trials met the inclusion criteria. Adenoviral vaccines, primarily based on human Ad5 and chimpanzee-derived vectors, were used to deliver tumor-associated antigens and neoantigens. Across studies, these vaccines demonstrated a favorable safety profile, with predominantly mild-to-moderate (grade 1-2) adverse events such as injection-site reactions, flu-like symptoms, and fatigue, while severe toxicities were rare. Immunogenicity outcomes were consistent, with most trials reporting strong antigen-specific CD8⁺ and CD4⁺ T-cell responses. However, clinical efficacy remained limited when used as monotherapy, with modest objective response rates but evidence of disease stabilization and improved survival in some combination strategies. Despite encouraging immunogenicity and safety, the overall clinical benefit of adenoviral vaccines remains constrained by tumor immune evasion and pre-existing vector immunity. Future large-scale randomized trials and rational combination approaches are warranted to enhance their therapeutic potential.
SN - 1750-9378
ER -