A cancer vaccine consisting of autologous dendritic cells which have been pulsed with a mutant p53 peptide. Vaccination with mutant p53 peptide pulsed dendritic cells may stimulate the host immune system to mount a cytotoxic T lymphocyte (CTL) response against tumor cells expressing mutant p53, resulting in tumor cell lysis. Many tumor cells overexpress mutant p53 proteins, resulting in the loss of apoptosis regulation and abnormal cell proliferation.