Putin: We are very close to producing so-called cancer vaccines (Reuters)
Russian President Vladimir Putin said that Russian scientists are close to producing cancer vaccines that may be available to patients soon.
Putin added in televised statements, "We are very close to producing so-called cancer vaccines and immune-modulating drugs for a new generation."
He explained, during his speech at a forum in Moscow on future technologies, "I hope that they will soon be used effectively as means of individual treatment."
Putin did not specify which types of cancer the proposed vaccines would target or how, according to Reuters.
There is no announced data about the Russian vaccines that Putin spoke about. But here we will provide information about the currently existing cancer vaccines, their types, and how they work.
Types of cancer vaccines
Vaccines prevent cancer and reduce the risk of developing it.
Cancer treatment vaccines.
Cancer prevention vaccines
Examples include vaccines against human papillomaviruses (HPV), which cause many types of cancer, including cervical cancer, according to the World Health Organization. There are currently 6 licensed vaccines against human papillomaviruses.
Also of this type are vaccines against hepatitis B (HBV), which can lead to liver cancer.
Cancer treatment vaccines
Cancer vaccines are a type of immunotherapy that treats cancer by strengthening the body's natural defenses against the disease, according to the National Cancer Foundation in the United States.
Unlike cancer prevention vaccines, cancer treatment vaccines are designed for use in people who already have the disease. They work against cancer cells, not against something that causes the cancer.
The idea behind therapeutic vaccines is that cancer cells contain substances called tumor-associated antigens that are not found in normal cells, or if they are present, at lower levels. Therapeutic vaccines can help the immune system learn how to recognize and react to these antigens and destroy the cancer cells that contain them.
Cancer vaccines can be manufactured in 3 main ways.
1- Cancer cells
They can be made from the affected person's own cancer cells. This means that they are specifically made so that they cause an immune response against the unique features of the affected person's cancer.
2- Antigens
Vaccines may be made from tumor-associated antigens that are found in cancer cells in many people with a particular type of cancer. Such a vaccine could cause an immune response in any patient whose cancer produces this antigen. This type of vaccine is still being tested.
3- Stem cells
Vaccines may be made from an infected person's own stem cells, which are a type of immune cell. Stem cell vaccines stimulate your immune system to respond to an antigen found on cancer cells.
A stem cell vaccine, sipuleucel-T, has been approved and is used to treat some men with advanced prostate cancer.
A different type of cancer treatment, called oncolytic virus therapy, is sometimes prescribed as a type of cancer vaccine. It uses an oncolytic virus, which is a virus that infects and destroys cancer cells but does not harm normal cells.
The first oncolytic viral therapy approved by the FDA is talimogene laherparepvec T-VEC (T-VEC, or Imlygic®). It is based on herpes simplex virus type 1. Although this virus can infect cancer cells and normal cells, normal cells are able to kill the virus while cancer cells cannot.
Talimogen laherparepvec is injected directly into the tumor. As the virus increasingly copies itself, it causes cancer cells to explode and die. Dying cells release new viruses and other substances that can cause an immune response against cancer cells throughout the body.
A number of countries and companies are also working on cancer vaccines. Last year, the UK government signed an agreement with Germany-based BioNTech to launch clinical trials providing “personalized cancer treatments,” with the aim of reaching 10,000 patients by 2030.
Two pharmaceutical companies (Moderna and Merck & Co) are developing an experimental cancer vaccine that a study shows reduces the chance of recurrence or death from melanoma - the deadliest of skin cancers - by half after 3 years of treatment.
What types of cancer are treated with vaccines?
Sipuleucel-T is used to treat people with prostate cancer:
Which has spread to other parts of the body.
Who have few or no symptoms.
Whose cancer does not respond to hormonal treatment.
T-Vec is used to treat some people with melanoma — a type of skin cancer — that comes back after surgery and cannot be removed with further surgery.
What are the side effects of cancer vaccines?
Cancer treatment vaccines can cause side effects that affect people in different ways. The side effects you may experience and how you feel will depend on how healthy you were before treatment, the type of cancer you have, how advanced it is, the type of therapeutic vaccine you get, and the dose.
Doctors and nurses cannot know for sure when or if side effects will occur or how serious they will be. So, it's important to know what signs to look for and what to do if you start having problems.
Cancer vaccines can cause flu-like symptoms, including:
Fever.
goosebumps.
weakness.
Dizziness.
Nausea or vomiting.
Muscle or joint pain.
exhaustion.
headache.
difficulty breathing.
Low or high blood pressure.
You may have a severe allergic reaction.
Sipuleucel-T can cause stroke.
T-Vec can cause tumor lysis syndrome. In this syndrome, cancer cells die and break down in the blood. This changes some chemicals in the blood, which can cause damage to organs such as the kidneys, heart and liver.
Since T-Vic is made from the herpes virus, it can sometimes cause a herpes virus infection that can lead to:
Pain, burning, or tingling in the blister around the mouth, genitals, fingers, or ears.
Eye pain, allergies, eye discharge, and blurred vision.
Weakness in the arms and legs.
Extreme fatigue and drowsiness.
confusion.
Source: Al Jazeera + Reuters + agencies