New cancer vaccines are on the horizon. Over the weekend, Moderna presented data at an oncology conference in Orlando from a Phase II clinical trial of an mRNA vaccine against a deadly skin cancer. The vaccine, when combined with Merck cancer therapy Keytruda, reduced by 44 percent the risk for death or recurrence of melanoma in people who had had surgery to remove an advanced form of the cancer compared with using Keytruda alone. Why it matters: The results have excited Moderna so much that CEO Stéphane Bancel told POLITICO he sees “incredible improvement” in cancer care in the next five to seven years. That doesn’t mean a cure, necessarily. More than 1 in 5 patients in Moderna’s vaccine trial saw their cancer return, for example. Still, numerous drug companies and organizations are competing to develop new products, exploiting advances in genetic sequencing and the pandemic success of the mRNA platform. Nearly 650 clinical trials involving vaccines for different cancers are ongoing worldwide, according to the U.S. clinical trials database, clinicaltrials.gov. More than a thousand clinical studies have been completed. Wide angle: Vaccines for cancers already exist. But they mostly combat cancer-causing viruses, such as human papillomavirus or hepatitis B. Others, like the Moderna shot, aim to treat people who already have the disease or prevent cancer recurrence among people in remission instead of preventing new cases. The FDA approved the first-ever vaccine used to treat cancer, sipuleucel-T, from California-based biotech firm Dendreon, in 2010. The vaccine uses a patient’s own immune cells to fight prostate cancer. But the vaccine’s price — $93,000 for a treatment course — and delays in securing FDA approval and CMS coverage contributed to Dendreon's 2015 bankruptcy. The vaccine has since remained available. Cancer vaccines like Moderna’s follow the same approach. Each injection is individualized, tailored to target cancer cells unique to each patient. Nearly 4 in 5 of the patients in the Moderna/Merck trial were cancer free 18 months later. What’s next: Moderna and Merck plan a Phase III trial this summer and hope to get FDA approval within two to three years.
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