Scientists have learned how to prepare personalized vaccines to fight cancer

Microbiologists from the University of Washington on April 2 published a paper on the successes achieved at the front of the fight against cancer. Their vaccines, genetically adapted to specific patients, helped trigger an immune response in the body against skin cancer cells.

In this study, scientists have deciphered the genomes of tumors , as well as the genomes of the patients themselves. This helped them identify neo-antigens - proteins located on the surface of cancer cells. Since there may be a large amount of these proteins, scientists had to work hard to figure out which proteins will cause the strongest immune response.

As a result, selecting seven neoantigens for each of the patients, the scientists included them in vaccines. Promising results were obtained - the immune system of patients recognized three proteins each and began to produce T-regulatory cells as a reaction, which are responsible for controlling the strength and duration of the immune response. It was also reassuring to scientists that after the introduction of the vaccine, the body begins to produce different types of T-cells, which increases its chances of overcoming the disease.

Since only three patients were involved in the study, this technology only proves the fundamental possibility of its working capacity. In addition, it is not a cure for cancer, but rather an aid for the body in fighting it. But, as one of the researchers notes, “this work opens the way for personal immuno-oncology.” It does not replace existing therapies, but facilitates the fight against the disease. Scientists hope to combine this technology with already existing immuno-therapeutic procedures.