A new mRNA vaccine is being talked about as a potential cure for pancreatic cancer.
Germany biotech company BioNTech conducted a study in which half of the participants were cancer-free 18 months after having their tumours removed and receiving the vaccine, the New York Post reported.
According to medical experts, the results of the trial pointed to the vaccine being able to teach the immune system to attack pancreatic cancer cells.
The study was done with 16 patients, each of whom was given eight doses of the vaccine created using the mRNA code taken individually from each of their tumours.
The results showed that eight out of the 16 patients reacted with a T-cell responses that led to them being cancer free throughout the trial period.
The other eight participants died or had their cancer return.
The results of the trial were described as “promising” by BioNTech co-founder and chief medical officer Özlem Türeci.
“Unlike some of the other immunotherapies, these mRNA vaccines do appear to have the ability to stimulate immune responses in pancreatic cancer patients,” said Dr. Vinod Balachandran who led the trial.