Merck and Moderna are calling this a personalised vaccine, meaning it works by targeting an individual patient’s tumour.
In order to create this new jab, scientists used mRNA technology – which was used for some Covid-19 vaccines – to target specific mutations within the cancer cells by surgically removing a small part of a patient’s tumour and then sequencing its DNA.
The result is a personalised anti-cancer jab which is specific to the patient’s tumour and instructs the immune system to recognise and attack any tumour cells that remain.
The two companies are testing other similar personalised vaccines for lung, bladder and kidney cancers.
Stephane Bancel, chief executive of Moderna, said the findings represent a “pivotal moment” inthe field of cancer research.
Shares in both Moderna and Merck have both surged since the announcement, external.
Cancer experts have also hailed the news as positive, but are keen to stress the findings are still early.
Dr Talisia Quallo, head of prevention and early detection at Cancer Research UK, said the research “shows promise” but said that the interim data still needs to be fully reviewed.
“It’s vital that research like this continues to be funded so that more people with cancer can have personalised treatment options to help them live longer, better lives”, she added.
Dr Lennard Lee, a consultant medical oncologist, and associate professor at the University of Oxford, said: “This is certainly good news for patients with melanoma, but the study has much wider implications. It provides proof of principle that personalised cancer vaccines work.”
