The scientists from the University of Massachusetts Amherst, have developed a vaccine that uses nanoparticles. It works to prevent melanoma (skin cancer), pancreatic cancer and triple-negative breast cancer in mice.

The mice were given the jab and up to 88% did not get tumours for some of the types of cancer. Generally, the spread of cancer was reduced.

This has only been trialled in mice so far, so if this were an evaluation exam question, we would all be writing that we cannot yet conclude if the jab will also work the same way in humans!

The vaccine works by activating the immune response using cancer-specific antigens. The role of the nanoparticles is to help the T cells recognise the antigen so it can be eliminated.

Once vaccinated, the mice were exposed to melanoma cells. Those who were given the vaccine stayed tumour free but those that received a traditional jab (the control group) were all dead by 35 days.

One of the challenges in cancer treatment is to target metastases (AQA). This new vaccine could be the solution as well as being able to treat cancers that are hard to get to, like those in the pancreas.

In stage one of the study, the antigens used in the vaccine matched the type of cancer to be treated. But in stage two of the study, the antigens used came from killed cancer cells taken form the tumour mass. This “super” vaccination in stage two showed that the mice, when exposed to different types of cancer cells, rejected the tumours and remained tumour free.

Download the article from the Independent news page here

Download the paper from the Cell Reports Medicine page here