A personalised mRNA vaccine for melanoma is expected to receive regulatory approval in the United States, Europe, and the United Kingdom next year. Modern announced positive results for the vaccine following a late-stage trial conducted in August.
More than 1,100 adults who underwent surgery to remove high-risk melanomas participated in the study. Two-thirds of these participants were randomly assigned to receive a bespoke vaccine combined with the standard immunotherapy pembrolizumab.
Both the vaccine and pembrolizumab were administered every three weeks for a period of up to one year. The cancer vaccine uses mRNA molecules to encode proteins featuring up to 34 mutations.
Rebecca Lee at the University of Manchester stated, "The jab contains a fingerprint of proteins specifically associated with the cancer." Approximately 82 per cent of participants who received the vaccine plus pembrolizumab remained alive without cancer recurrence on average about two years after starting treatment.
In comparison, 70 per cent of participants who received pembrolizumab alone were alive without cancer recurrence on average about two years after treatment began. The UK sees 19,400 melanoma cases diagnosed annually, with about 25 per cent of those cases classified as high risk.
A Reuters report in January suggested the treatment would cost around $200,000 per treatment. Lee noted, "If it was a cheap drug, I’d definitely say it will get approved [for NHS use], but it’s going to be expensive."
Alan Melcher at the Institute of Cancer Research in London said, "I think approval could be quick, and next year sounds reasonable." James Larkin at the Institute of Research says personalised vaccines could also work for other types of cancer such as lungs, bladder and kidneys.
