Personalized mRNA vaccines for cancer therapy are a promising technology, but data on them is still insufficient, believes Batyr Berdyklychev, head of the World Health Organization (WHO) office in Russia.
“Early clinical trials show that such vaccines can stimulate the immune system and demonstrate positive results for certain types of cancer. However, most data to date remain preliminary or concern narrow patient groups. To confirm the efficacy of mRNA vaccines for various cancer types, larger and longer randomized studies are needed. At present, WHO has no approved mRNA vaccines for cancer treatment,” the expert said in an interview with TASS.
According to him, the same applies to HIV therapy. “Vaccine research also continues, but it is still in the development and testing stage,” said Berdyklychev, noting that last year WHO recommended using a new drug—lenacapavir—as a twice-yearly injection for additional pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) of HIV infection.
“This is a rather important step because lenacapavir significantly simplifies prevention by replacing daily pill intake. The prospects for effective drugs against cancer and HIV are indeed promising, but it is important to approach them with scientific rigor and caution to ensure safety and benefit for patients,” summarized the WHO representative.
At the end of November, the Russian Ministry of Health issued permission for the use in clinical practice of the personalized mRNA-based cancer vaccine NeoOnkovak, with its application strictly regulated.