Vaccine Cancer Personalized

About Vaccine Cancer Personalized

Personalized cancer vaccines use mRNA to target tumor specific mutations. Each vaccine is custom designed for an individual patient based on DNA sequencing of their tumor. Moderna and Merck reported Phase 2b results for a personalized mRNA melanoma vaccine in December 2022, showing a 44 percent reduction in risk of recurrence or death when combined with Keytruda. BioNTech is testing its own personalized mRNA vaccines, including in pancreatic cancer. The approach identifies up to a few dozen neoantigens unique to the patients tumor. The mRNA vaccine encodes these neoantigens, stimulating T cells to attack cancer cells. Manufacturing takes several weeks per patient. Phase 3 trials began in 2023. If successful, personalized cancer vaccines could transform oncology. The approach is being tested in pancreatic cancer, colorectal cancer, and head and neck cancer. The convergence of mRNA technology, cancer genomics, and immunotherapy enables this approach.