There’s great news today for cancer patients in England, as thousands are set to be fast-tracked onto a new program that will give them access to experimental personalized vaccines. The initiative, called the Cancer Vaccine Launch Pad, aims to get more patients onto trials of mRNA vaccines against their specific cancer, in the hopes of accelerating development of these potentially game-changing treatments.

The first patient to receive a shot under the new scheme was Elliot Phebve, a 55-year-old university lecturer and father-of-four who was diagnosed with colorectal cancer after routine testing. After surgery to remove the tumor and part of the intestine, Phebve has been undergoing chemotherapy alongside being invited to take part in the trial.

“Taking part in this trial tallies with my profession as a lecturer, and as a community-centred person. I want to impact other people’s lives positively and help them realise their potential,” Phebve said in a statement.

The hospital where Phebve received the experimental vaccine is one of 30 across England that have signed up for the Cancer Vaccine Launch Pad, with more to follow soon.

We’ve seen the potential of mRNA vaccine technology during the COVID-19 pandemic, but the big advantage when it comes to cancer is that these vaccines can be personalized to a specific tumor from a specific patient, giving them the best chance at effectiveness. A landmark Phase 3 trial of a melanoma vaccine was launched recently, followed shortly after by reports of positive early results of a brain cancer vaccine in both humans and our canine best buds.

The Cancer Vaccine Launch Pad will hopefully allow more patients access to this new technology, streamlining the process of assessing eligibility and inviting patients onto a suitable trial.

“The NHS [the UK’s National Health Service] is in a unique position to deliver this kind of world-leading research at size and scale, and as more of these trials get up and running at hospitals across the country, our national match-making service will ensure as many eligible patients as possible get the opportunity to access them,” explained NHS chief executive Amanda Pritchard.

An mRNA vaccine seeks to prime a patient’s immune system to produce antibodies against proteins that are known to play a part in their cancer – this information is obtained via testing of tumor tissue. When used in conjunction with surgery, radiotherapy, and other drug treatments, as deemed appropriate by oncologists, it is hoped these vaccines will help the body clear any residual tumor cells and reduce the risk of recurrence.

Iain Foulkes, Executive Director of Research and Innovation at charity Cancer Research UK, commented, “Clinical trials like this are vital in helping more people live longer, better lives, free from the fear of cancer.”

The UK government is partnering with vaccine manufacturers BioNTech, pledging to provide 10,000 patients with precision cancer treatment by 2030. There are plans to start broadening the program to other cancer types including pancreatic cancer, which is the 10^th most common type in the UK but the fifth most common cause of cancer death.  

Vaccines for cancer are looking more and more realistic, thanks to a succession of breakthroughs and positive trial results. Phebve summed up what a new treatment option could mean for the almost half of us who are projected to be affected by cancer within our lifetimes.

“Through the potential of this trial, if it is successful, it may help thousands, if not millions of people, so they can have hope, and may not experience all I have gone through. I hope this will help other people.”