All articles tagged with #immunotherapy
MimiVax's experimental cancer vaccine SurVaxM failed to meet its primary endpoint in a Phase 2b trial for glioblastoma, showing a median overall survival of 22.8 months versus 20.3 months for placebo. However, the drug demonstrated statistically significant survival benefits in patients aged 65 and under, prompting the company to seek FDA approval.
Two new studies suggest that mental health interventions may improve cancer outcomes. A PLOS Medicine analysis found that patients on SSRIs had a 37% lower death risk during immunotherapy, while a SEER-Medicare study linked early psychotherapy to a 21% reduction in cancer-specific mortality. Both findings are observational and require further trials to confirm causality.
Recent mixed results in cancer vaccine trials have forced the biotech industry to reassess the scope of mRNA-based therapies. While a late-stage melanoma trial showed promise, other programs have failed or been halted, raising questions about which cancers can effectively be targeted by this technology.
Researchers at Stanford Medicine and the VA Palo Alto Health Care System developed uRARE-seq, a urine-based liquid biopsy that detects localized bladder cancer with 95% sensitivity and 90% specificity. Unlike DNA-based tests, this method analyzes cell-free RNA to assess tumor activity, distinguishing between low- and high-grade cancers. The test also predicts whether patients will respond to BCG immunotherapy or require chemotherapy, potentially reducing the need for invasive cystoscopies and optimizing treatment allocation.
Moderna and Merck reported positive Phase 3 results for a personalized mRNA cancer vaccine, intismeran autogene, in melanoma patients. While the therapy remains investigational, early data suggests it reduces recurrence when combined with immunotherapy. Experts highlight the potential for personalized treatments across various cancers, though access and cost remain significant hurdles.
CAR T cell therapy has transformed blood cancer treatment, achieving high survival rates, but faces hurdles in cost, side effects, and expanding to solid tumors. Recent FDA approvals for myeloma and myeloproliferative disorders highlight broader immunotherapy advances, while experts debate next-generation designs and accessibility.
A new mRNA-based immunotherapy has shown unprecedented success in animal models of pancreatic cancer. Researchers at UMass Chan Medical School developed a single injection combining five cytokine mRNAs and three tumor-associated antigens. In mice with pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma, approximately 50% experienced complete tumor regression that lasted up to one year after treatment stopped. The therapy works by weakening the fibrotic barrier around tumors and training the immune system to recognize cancer cells, potentially creating long-term immune memory. While mouse results do not guarantee human success, the team is developing an IND-ready product for clinical trials.
DelveInsight forecasts a 36% CAGR for the cancer vaccines market in the 7 major markets from 2026–2036, rising from about USD 335 million in 2025 as incidence grows and a robust pipeline (OSE-2101, Intismeran Autogene, IO102-IO103, CAN-2409, GPS, BNT113, and others) advances. The US leads with roughly 87% of 7MM sales in 2025, with melanoma, NSCLC, prostate, breast, and other solid tumors driving growth and an increasing focus on neoantigen/mRNA vaccines and combination strategies.
A 3-year-old with chemo-resistant hepatoblastoma that had spread to the lungs (and possibly bones) achieved complete remission after just two doses of an experimental GPC3-targeted CAR-T cell therapy, with a year of no disease signs reported. The findings, published in The New England Journal of Medicine as part of the CARE study, suggest CAR-T approaches may be safe and effective for select GPC3+ solid tumors in children, though more research is needed to confirm efficacy and safety across more patients.
A personalized mRNA melanoma vaccine showed promising results in a Phase 3 trial, signaling the potential for mRNA-based vaccines to treat other cancers, with trials already underway for lung and pancreatic cancers; however, full data remain pending and political/regulatory factors could influence future development.
Merck and Moderna announced that the intismeran (mRNA-4157) adjuvant vaccine, when combined with Keytruda, improved recurrence-free survival and distant metastasis-free survival in a phase 3 melanoma trial, renewing optimism for personalized neoantigen vaccines and potentially reshaping oncology if data readouts support broader use; regulators will be engaged for potential approvals, and the news spurred biotech stock gains while highlighting a growing field of mRNA cancer therapies from Arcturus, BioNTech, Strand Therapeutics and others.
UW researchers have developed a fentanyl vaccine that triggers antibodies to block fentanyl from entering the brain, potentially reducing overdoses and aiding recovery. They plan to file an FDA IND to begin human trials, while vaccines for oxycodone and heroin are already advancing, and they aim to develop multi-drug vaccines to counter emerging substances, viewing the vaccine as one tool in a broader addiction-treatment strategy.
Inhibrx’s experimental OX40-targeting immunotherapy produced tumor responses in head and neck cancers, with the most striking activity in HPV-positive tumors, though the benefit may be limited to that subset despite a long history of failed OX40 approaches.
Personalized mRNA cancer vaccines from Moderna and Merck are showing promising late-stage results in cancers such as melanoma, pancreatic and brain tumors by training the immune system to recognize tumor-specific mutations. When combined with immunotherapy, these vaccines have reduced cancer recurrence and extended remission in some patients. More than 120 trials since the early 2000s illustrate ongoing progress and optimization of targets and combinations, though bringing an mRNA cancer vaccine to the public could take 10–15 years amid funding shifts.
A small NEJM trial reports that a single intravenous injection of a lentiviral vector instructs the body to generate CAR-T cells in vivo, which then deplete B cells and autoantibodies and correlate with improved motor and cognitive function, reduced fatigue, and lower inflammation in people with multiple sclerosis and other autoimmune diseases over about six months. This supports the concept of in‑vivo CAR-T therapy as a cheaper, faster approach, but efficacy must be confirmed in more participants.