Revolutionary cancer cure? Personalized mRNA vaccine trials for melanoma underway

Doctors have initiated trials on hundreds of melanoma patients using the world’s first personalized mRNA cancer vaccine, a development that experts believe could dramatically change cancer treatment by potentially offering a lasting cure.

Melanoma, the most deadly form of skin cancer, affects around 132,000 individuals worldwide each year. While surgery is typically the main form of treatment, other methods like radiotherapy, various medications, and chemotherapy are also utilized.

The innovative vaccines under trial are customized for each patient, guiding their immune system to specifically attack cancer cells and help prevent the disease’s return.

Results from a phase 2 trial indicated a substantial decrease in the risk of melanoma recurrence for those who were vaccinated. A comprehensive phase 3 trial is now underway, conducted by the University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (UCLH).

Dr. Heather Shaw, the national coordinator of the trial, expressed to the Guardian her optimism about the vaccine’s potential to treat melanoma and its applicability to other cancers, including those of the lung, bladder, and kidney.

Shaw remarked on the precision and sophistication of this treatment, comparing its high-quality approach to top-tier culinary art, much to the excitement of the patients involved.

The vaccine, known as mRNA-4157 (V940), is tailored to each patient’s cancer, stimulating the immune system to target specific tumor neoantigens—unique markers on tumors identifiable by the immune system.

This vaccine encodes up to 34 neoantigens and prompts an immune response tailored to the mutations in the individual patient’s cancer. To create this personalized vaccine, a tumor sample is collected during surgery, followed by DNA sequencing and AI analysis to ensure the vaccine precisely matches the patient’s tumor characteristics.

Phase 2 data demonstrated that patients at high risk of severe melanoma who received the vaccine in conjunction with Keytruda, a cancer immunotherapy drug, had nearly a 50% lower risk of death or cancer recurrence after three years compared to those receiving only Keytruda.

The treatment regimen involved administering 1mg of the mRNA vaccine every three weeks for a total of up to nine doses, alongside 200mg of Keytruda every three weeks for about a year, amounting to up to 18 doses.

The ongoing Phase 3 trial is a larger global effort aiming to include roughly 1,100 patients. The UK segment plans to enroll at least 60 to 70 participants across eight centers, including cities like London, Manchester, Edinburgh, and Leeds.