US Scientists Move Closer To Creating A Universal Cancer Vaccine

• 21.07.2025, 20:37

mRNA technology has shown striking results.

American scientists have moved closer to creating a universal cancer vaccine - a new approach using mRNA technology has shown unexpected and promising results in an animal experiment, writes EurekAlert.

The study, published in the journal Nature Biomedical Engineering, was conducted by a team at the University of Florida. Instead of attacking specific tumor proteins, as is common in traditional cancer vaccines, they activated the immune system in a nonspecific way - as if the body were fighting a virus. This led to a pronounced anti-tumor response.

Combining the experimental mRNA vaccine with common immunotherapy drugs, particularly PD-1 checkpoint inhibitors, the scientists achieved a strong response from the immune system. Even tumors previously thought to be resistant to treatment shrank or disappeared completely. In some models, such as melanoma and brain cancer, the vaccine worked even without the support of additional drugs. The scientists say this effect was achieved by increasing the expression of the PD-L1 protein inside the tumor, making it more vulnerable.

The study builds on the previous success of the same team, which in 2023 conducted the first clinical trial of a personalized mRNA vaccine against glioblastoma. Back then, a vaccine created from the patient's own tumor cells was used.

The new approach is universal - the vaccine is not tailored to a specific tumor, but simply "wakes up" the immune system. This makes it a potentially massive and affordable treatment.

The authors call the discovery a breakthrough: if the results are confirmed in clinical trials, the vaccine could become a universal tool in the fight against cancer, especially those forms that are not amenable to traditional treatments. The team is now working on improving the formula and preparing to start human trials.