A new cancer mRNA can reprogram the immune system to attack tumors within 48 hours, research shows.
The first clinical trial in four adult patients has shown that hemp helps fight aggressive and deadly brain tumors.
It uses the same technology as some Covid vaccines to train the immune system and personalize it for patients using their own DNA.
“I hope this can be a new paradigm for how we treat patients, a new platform technology for modulating the immune system,” said Dr. Elias Sayur from the University of Florida.
“Hopefully this can now be combined with other immunotherapies to open up those immunotherapies.
“We’ve actually shown that you can synergize with other types of immunotherapy, and maybe now we can do it with immunotherapy.”
mRNA vaccines have become popular during pandemics, including Pfizer and Moderna’s Covid jab, and researchers are now repurposing the technology to work on other diseases.
It works by giving the body’s immune system the genetic code to read and increase the production of attack cells.
Previous research in mice has shown that it is effective against cervical cancer caused by the HPV virus.
A recent study published in Cell looked at how mRNA vaccines worked against glioblastomas in human clinical trials.
The study presents the results of seven years of research on mRNA brain cancer, including precise mouse models.
It also included a clinical trial of 10 animal dogs that developed spontaneous brain tumors and had no other treatment options.
The results of both show promise in treating the disease, requiring more research in humans.
Early in trials to assess the clinical effects of the vaccine, patients lived longer than expected or lived longer than expected.
