I'm sure this was posted about earlier in the week but I couldn't find the thread. Its now available on youtube if anyone is interested.
ATTAC Cancer VaccineI've done a little research on this topic because, believe it or not, just two weeks ago I enrolled in a study thats almost identical. The trial I'm doing is running out of Frankston, Vic and details can be
found here - its a "Neoantigen mRNA Personalised Cancer Vaccine".
Its pretty cutting edge stuff, and we're certainly very lucky that these sort of therapies are being trialled in Australia. Anyway while as a cancer patient I'm stoked to get a shot at this, and also believe it offers a genuine chance to cure the incurable, as an Imugene shareholder I'm not too worried
The creation of each vaccine is incredibly resource intensive. For a start you need a biopsy sample, which is not always simple or even possible, depending on the type and location of your cancer. Once the sample is obtained, they then take it and analyse it for its unique genetic mutations, and then create some kind of customised mRNA soup that they inject back into you in 3 weekly intervals in an effort to invoke an immune response that targets those mutations. As an example of how much effort goes into each patient though,
they are telling me that my potion won't be ready for 3 to 4 months!!! This really is the ultimate in personalised medicine.
Even though there are only a few of these trials running worldwide, and participant numbers are always small because of how resource intense it is, some of these trials have had incredible response rates. One
example here shows a trial where 6 out of 8 stage 3/4 melanoma patients were alive with no evidence of disease 4 years after the trial (all 8 were actually still alive). They are pretty remarkable numbers.
Anyway, as a treatment, I'm still not sure that this is comparable to a successful onCARlytics, simply because of how much easier it would be to manufacture and administer. OnCARlytics sounds much more "One size fits all" and "off the shelf" than this will ever be.
Either way its good to see progress being made.
(20min delay)