Terry Lichtor
Terry Lichtor, MD, Ph.D., is a practicing neurosurgeon. He has several research interests, and his brain tumor work is largely focused on the development of a DNA vaccine for the treatment of primary and metastatic intracerebral tumors. Dr. Lichtor has shown that vaccines prepared by the transfer of DNA from the tumor into a highly immunogenic cell line can encompass the array of tumor antigens that characterize the patient population. Poorly immunogenic tumor antigens, characteristic of malignant cells, can become strongly antigenic if they are expressed by highly immunogenic cells. The introduction of the vaccine directly into the tumor bed of animals with an intracerebral tumor stimulates a systemic cellular anti-tumor immune response associated with a prolongation of survival. Hopefully, this vaccine strategy will be efficacious in the treatment of patients with brain tumors. Dr. Lichtor is a member of the American College of Surgeons and the neurosurgery faculty at Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, Illinois, USA.