New mRNA vaccine for pancreatic cancer yields promising early results

New data from a clinical trial revealed that a personalized mRNA vaccine for pancreatic cancer shows promising long-term results, pointing to a new treatment path.

Currently, only 13% of patients survive beyond five years after diagnosis, and up to 80% of pancreatic cancers may recur.

One of the common drivers of cancer is the KRAS gene mutations. They cause about 90% of pancreatic cancers and 40% of colorectal cancers.

The experimental vaccine, ELI-002 2P, uses lipophilic peptides to train immune cells to target these mutations. Its mRNA technology is the same as that found in COVID-19 shots.

In the Phase 1 trial involving 25 participants—20 with pancreatic and 5 with colorectal cancer—the patients with pancreatic cancer lived recurrence-free for an average of over 15 months and survived for 29 months post-vaccination.

Results showed that 84% of patients mounted an immune response, with nearly 70% triggering responses against additional tumor targets not included in the vaccine.

A Phase 2 trial is now underway.

Despite the early-stage successes, the future of mRNA research faces political uncertainty in the US. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and other Trump administration officials have questioned the safety of the technology. They have also cut funding to the National Cancer Institute by over 40%.