GROUNDBREAKING LUNG CANCER VACCINE TRIALS STARTS FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER

With 1.8 million deaths from lung cancer each year, lung cancer is the most common cancer in the world. Survival rates have increased despite the traditional treatment of surgery, radiation, and chemotherapy. However, a recently developed vaccine aims to use the body's immune system to stop the cancer. In 34 research facilities spread over seven nations, the world's first lung cancer vaccine is currently undergoing trials.

The novel vaccine targets non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), the most prevalent type of lung cancer, using mRNA technology. During COVID-19, the majority of the world learned about mRNA vaccines for the first time as a result of their commercial development. There is now a lot of hope that mRNA cancer vaccines will offer a different kind of treatment to completely eradicate cancer cells and prevent them from returning.

BioTech's BNT116 vaccine functions by injecting NSCLC tumour markers into the body through messenger RNA. This sets up the immune system to perceive a specific protein expressed by non-small cell lung cancer cells as alien, causing the body to attack the protein as soon as it is discovered. This treatment is especially beneficial since it is expected to boost the patient's immunity.  

Consultant medical oncologist at University College London Hospitals (UCLH), Professor Siow Ming Lee, told The Guardian, "It's simple to deliver, and you can select specific antigens in the cancer cell, and then you target them." "The next significant advancement in cancer treatment is this technology."

About 130 cancer patients are participating in the trials, which are being conducted in the UK, Germany, Hungary, Poland, Spain, and the United States. BNT116 is among the approximately sixty mRNA cancer vaccines presently undergoing clinical trials; the COVID-19 vaccine's success has resulted in increased funding and attention for this kind of treatment.

Scientist Janusz Racz, 67, was the first person in the UK to receive the vaccine in London. The Guardian claims that he was given six successive injections of various RNA strands, spaced five minutes apart over thirty minutes. For six weeks, he will get injections once a week; after that, he will get shots every three weeks for 54 weeks. Racz, who received a lung cancer diagnosis in May, is still optimistic about his prognosis.