Second Ascoli Piceno conference on gene vaccination in cancer (GVC), Ascoli Piceno, Italy, October 9–11, 2013

This paper summarizes the content of the Second Ascoli Piceno Conference on Gene Vaccination in Cancer (GVC) held in Ascoli Piceno, Italy, in October 9th-11th 2013. This meeteng offered the opportunity to continue and strengthen the existing national and international collaborations between basic scientists, clinical researchers and scientists in industry to overcome obstacles in gene vaccination against cancer. The 2013 GVC meeting covered the following topics: (1) New technologies for gene vaccination; (2) Emerging targets for cancer vaccines; (3) Therapeutic vaccination against HPV-dependent diseases; (4) Pre-clinical challenges; (5) Veterinary applications of gene vaccination in cancer; (6) In vivo gene-electro-transfer: from technology development to clinical applications.