A new vaccine developed with the same technology as the BioNTech-Pfizer Covid jab has offered hope of a cure for pancreatic cancer - the deadliest common form of the disease, which kills 90% of patients within two years.
The vaccine, developed by experts working with BioNTech and US biotechnology firm Genentech, uses mRNA theory and aims to prevent tumours from returning after surgery, the Independent reports. A trial at the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Centre in New York found half of patients given the vaccine were cancer-free 18 months later.
The trial saw 16 patients given eight doses of a vaccine intravenously after surgery to remove a tumour. The jabs were personalised using mRNA genetic code within their tumours to prompt cells to make a protein that will trigger an immune response. The body can then detect cancer cells as a threat, and white blood cells known as T-cells can then destroy them.
The trial saw half the patients remained cancer-free throughout, as the vaccine had trigged a T-cell response, while among the remaining eight patients, six died or saw the cancer return.
BioNTech said preliminary results showed “a favourable safety profile as well as encouraging signs of clinical activity”.
Dr Vinod Balachandran, of the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Centre, who led the study, said: "Unlike some of the other immunotherapies, these mRNA vaccines do appear to have the ability to stimulate immune responses in pancreatic cancer patients.
“So we’re very excited about that, and the early results that suggest that if you have an immune response you may have a better outcome.”
BioNTech co-founder and chief medical officer Prof Özlem Türeci said: "With only under 5 per cent of patients responding to current treatment options, PDAC is one of the highest unmet medical need cancers. We are committed to take up this challenge by leveraging our long-standing research in cancer vaccinology and are trying to break new ground in the treatment of such hard-to-treat tumours.
“The results of this Phase 1 study are encouraging. We look forward to further evaluating these early results in a larger randomized study.”
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