Shimmer of hope: MRNA vaccination could defeat skin cancer!

Shimmer of hope: MRNA vaccination could defeat skin cancer!

Anette Zimmermann is faced with a challenging situation. Shortly before Christmas, she learns that her skin cancer has returned. In search of new treatment options, she stumbles through a promising study by the University Hospital Hamburg-Eppendorf, which tests the use of mRNA vaccinations in combination with immunotherapy. The hope of the doctors? Perhaps it is the breakthrough in cancer research that everyone has waited for so long. Anette as a test subject for the study, accompanied by the documentary filmmaker Larissa Klinker, who holds her journey for ARTE. At the latest episode of 11km, the focus is on Anette's hope, while the doctors hope for a revolution in cancer therapy.

But what exactly is these mrNA vaccinations? According to the N-TV, the new vaccine developed by Moderna and MSD is specifically used against malignant melanomas, the most malignant forms of skin cancer. The first patient, a 52-year-old Brit named Steve Young, already received the syringe after a tumor was removed from the scalp. The vaccine works based on the same technology as Corona vaccines and activates the immune system to target the body's own cancer cells. It is interesting that the vaccine is individually developed, based on the analysis of tumor tissue after surgical removal. The aim is to identify cancer cells and prevent relapses.

a ray of hope in oncology

In practice, a clinical study shows that the antibody medication Keytruda in combination with the vaccine can reduce the risk of a relapse by 49 percent. These developments are particularly important because annually an estimated 325,000 people worldwide develop black skin cancer, of which around 57,000 die from it. The expectations are not only on hope that skin cancer can be treated better; There are also considerations to use the therapy for preventing other types of cancer such as lung, bladder and kidney cancer.

The basic principles behind mRNA vaccinations are extremely fascinating. According to the cancer information service, Messenger RNA transports genetic information from the cell nuclei to the outer areas of the cell. There, this information is translated into proteins that take on various tasks in the body. After fulfilling your function, the mRNA is quickly broken down. In contrast to conventional vaccinations, therapeutic cancer vaccinations are aimed at people who have already become cancer.

The fascination for mrNA technologies in cancer therapy is growing steadily, but at the moment these vaccinations are not yet approved for cancer treatment. However, numerous clinical studies run worldwide, including in Germany, and show the first promising results. Many of these studies are looking for combination therapies that could possibly lead to approval by 2025.

Anette Zimmermann is a lively example of how hope and medical progress can be combined. While she is planning her way into the future, the question remains: could it be that we are at the beginning of a new chapter in cancer therapy? A chapter in which therapies that appeared not too long ago may soon become reality like science fiction.

You can find out more about these developments in the article of HR- Inforadio href = "https://www.n-tv.de/wissen/erste-patenten-werden- against-hautkrebs-gimpft-article24907966.html"> n-tv and Cancer information service .