[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text dp_text_size=”size-4″]One of those malignancies that can be fatal is pancreatic cancer. An innovative mRNA vaccination could stop tumours from coming back after surgery.
Pancreatic cancer kills nine out of 10 patients, and survival rates have not increased in over 60 years. There aren’t many choices for successful therapy. Because of this, every development in therapy is a revolution. That is indeed what is taking place right now.
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Following the surgical removal of their tumours, 16 patients with pancreatic cancer received a customised mRNA vaccination from US researchers. Half of the patients had not experienced a recurrence at the conclusion of the 18-month study period. That’s a tremendous accomplishment for a malignancy that frequently comes back after surgery within a few months. There aren’t many superlatives in the field of medical science. However, in this instance, pancreatic cancer specialists are overly enthusiastic: Tumour immunologist Niels Halama of Heidelberg’s German Cancer Research Centre called the most recent finding “fantastic” and “unexpected” news. A “completely new approach” was used, according to Ulm gastroenterologist Thomas Seufferlein, who hailed it as a crucial breakthrough. It will revolutionise the industry, according to his colleague Alexander Kleger, who termed it a “huge step”.
The research, which was written up in the journal Nature, only involved 16 participants. However, it is the first proof of the effective application of mRNA technology for one of the deadliest and most challenging types of cancer. Additionally, it represents a significant advancement in the long-running project to create cancer vaccinations that are specifically designed for each patient’s tumour.
How was the study conducted?
Patients’ tumours were removed at the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Centre in New York and transferred to Germany. The DNA of the tumour tissue was then sequenced by the biotech company BioNTech, and any mutations, or so-called neoantigens, were checked for.
The creation of an mRNA-based vaccination followed the specifically prepared list of neoantigens to be targeted for each patient, which was itself a very difficult procedure based on years of study. The intention was to trigger an immune response to these neoantigen structures, similar to the mRNA vaccination against COVID-19. Nine weeks after the patients’ surgeries to remove the original pancreatic tumour, this vaccination was initially given to them. Chemotherapy and so-called checkpoint inhibitors, which are chemicals that stop cancer from shutting down the immune system, were also given to the patients.
By the end of the research, the tumour had not reappeared in the eight individuals who had an immunological response. The immunological response was absent in the other eight individuals, who relapsed.
Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai researcher Nina Bhardwaj stated, “I am very excited about the apparent correlation between the induction of immunity and the early indication of longer-term survival.” She added that the results.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]
