mRNA COVID-19 vaccines show potential to boost cancer treatment, study finds

A study by scientists from the MD Anderson Cancer Center and the University of Florida found that patients with advanced lung or skin cancer lived significantly longer if they received a Pfizer or Moderna mRNA vaccine within 100 days of starting immunotherapy.

“The vaccine acts like a siren to activate immune cells throughout the body,” said lead researcher Dr. Adam Grippin of MD Anderson. “We’re sensitizing immune-resistant tumors to immune therapy.”

The researchers emphasized that the effect was unrelated to COVID-19 infection itself. Instead, the mRNA molecule used in these vaccines appeared to enhance the immune response to checkpoint inhibitors — a class of drugs that help the immune system recognize and attack cancer cells.

Among lung cancer patients, those vaccinated were nearly twice as likely to be alive three years after beginning treatment compared with unvaccinated patients. For melanoma, survival rates were also higher, though many participants were still alive when the data were analyzed.

Non-mRNA vaccines, such as flu shots, showed no similar benefit.

Dr. Jeff Coller of Johns Hopkins University, who was not involved in the study, called the findings “a very good clue” that mRNA-based medicines could offer broader health benefits. “mRNA medicines continue to surprise us in how beneficial they can be to human health,” he noted.

Earlier, it was reported that individuals experiencing their first psychotic episode who also suffer from skin conditions such as rashes or itching face a significantly higher risk of developing depression and suicidal thoughts, according to new research presented at the European College of Neuropsychopharmacology (ECNP) conference in Amsterdam.