Russia says it’s developed a cancer vaccine and will launch it for free

Russia’s Health Ministry claims it has developed a cancer vaccine that will be rolled out to patients for free.

Andrey Kaprin, head of the Health Ministry’s Radiological Medical Research Center, said the injection would take place in early 2025, state media reported.

The vaccine will apparently be used to treat cancer patients, rather than given to the general public to prevent tumor formation in the first place.

Previous comments from Russian government scientists suggest each shot is personalized to the individual patient, similar to cancer vaccines being developed in the West.

It is currently unclear which cancer types the vaccine is intended for, how effective it is and how Russia plans to roll it out.

The name of the vaccine has not been disclosed.

Like the rest of the world, cancer rates are rising in Russia, with more than 635,000 cases recorded in 2022.

Colon, breast and lung cancer are believed to be the most common forms of the disease in the country.

Personalized cancer vaccines are designed to teach the immune system how to recognize and attack proteins specific to a patient’s cancer.

To do this, vaccines use genetic material, called RNA, from the patient’s own tumor.

In the same way that traditional vaccines use part of the virus to prevent disease, these use harmless proteins from the surface of cancer cells, known as antigens.

When these antigens are introduced into the body, the immune system should be stimulated to produce antibodies against them, which then kill the cancer cells.

Other countries have also been working to develop their own personalized cancer vaccines.

In May, researchers at the University of Florida tested an individualized vaccine in four patients with glioblastoma, the aggressive brain cancer that killed Senator John McCain and Beau Biden.

The team found that the injection causes a strong immune response just two days after the injection.

Senior study author Elias Sayour, a pediatric oncologist at UF Health, said, “In less than 48 hours, we could see these tumors go from what we call ‘cold’ – immune cold, very few immune cells, a very silent immune response – to ‘hot,'” very active immune response.’

And in Great Britain, scientists are testing a personalized vaccine against melanoma.

Early results showed it dramatically improved survival rates from the disease, the deadliest form of skin cancer.

Steve Young, a 52-year-old melanoma patient in Britain, used the vaccine as part of a clinical trial.

He said, ‘This is my best chance to stop the cancer.’