A new treatment combining an experimental mRNA vaccine with an existing immunotherapy drug has been shown to nearly halve the risk of melanoma recurrence over five years, according to researchers at NYU Langone Perlmutter Cancer Center in New York.
The vaccine, called intismeran and developed by Moderna, was tested alongside Merck's Keytruda in a study of 107 American and Australian patients whose tumours had been surgically removed. After five years, nearly 69 percent of those receiving the combination remained cancer-free, compared with 49 percent of those on Keytruda alone.
The combination reduced the risk of recurrence or death by 49 percent, lowered the risk of cancer spreading by 59 percent, and improved survival rates by more than 20 percent. The vaccine works by training the immune system to recognise and attack abnormal proteins, known as neoantigens, produced by cancer cells.
Keytruda helps make cancer cells more visible to the immune system, but resistance can develop. The personalised mRNA vaccine is designed to trigger protective T-cells that target the patient's specific tumour mutations. A Phase 3 trial involving 1,000 patients is now underway, and the vaccine is also being tested against lung and other cancers.
Dr. Janice Mehnert, associate director of clinical research at the cancer centre, said the findings encourage researchers globally that mRNA vaccines could work well with immunotherapy for other hard-to-treat cancers. The American Cancer Society estimates 112,000 new melanoma cases and 8,500 deaths in the US this year.
