Vaccine could prevent some forms of colon cancer
FILE-A doctor reviews a cancer x-ray. (Photo By BSIP/UIG Via Getty Images)
Scientists are creating a vaccine to teach the immune system to intercept a form of colon cancer before it transitions to a tumor.
The Associated Press reported that about three potential Lynch syndrome vaccines are in development, including two in early clinical trials in the U.S. and a third in Britain.
Lynch syndrome is a gene passed from a parent that puts them at very high risk of colorectal cancer and more susceptible to certain other cancers.
Potential vaccines to stop gene-caused cancer
Why you should care:
In a first-step study, a Houston doctor and 44 other Lynch syndrome carriers tested a vaccine made by Swiss biotech Nouscom that teaches the immune system to detect abnormalities in Lynch-caused precancers.
Referencing the MD Anderson team reported in Nature Medicine, The Associated Press noted that this amped up tumor-eliminating T cells and a year later, colonoscopies showed fewer precancerous growths and no advanced polyps.
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Additionally, Oxford University researchers are starting initial testing of a similar approach to attack Lynch-spurred precancers, a vaccine made by Massachusetts-based Moderna using the mRNA technology behind its COVID-19 shot.
And scientists are awaiting results from a slightly larger study comparing California-based ImmunityBio’s Tri-Ad5 vaccine, which flags some different cancer markers, to a placebo.
Is Lynch syndrome linked to a rise in young adult colon cancer?
Dig deeper:
Roughly 158,000 people are diagnosed with colorectal cancer in the U.S. annually, most of them over 50 years old, and cases in younger adults are rising.
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Lynch syndrome affects about 1 in 279 people. For the average person, U.S. guidelines call for routine colorectal cancer screening — with a colonoscopy or other kinds of tests — to begin at age 45.
However, at any age, it’s recommended to get a checkup for symptoms like blood in stool or rectal bleeding; changes in bowel habits such as diarrhea, constipation or narrowing of stool that lasts more than a few days; unintended weight loss; and cramps or abdominal pain.
The Source: Information for this story was provided by The Associated Press, which references an MD Anderson team report in Nature Medicine. This story was reported from Washington, D.C.