Soon A Vaccine Against Brain Cancer?

Brain cancer is one of the most aggressive. However, a vaccine already developed could put an end to this disease.

Vaccines are a good prevention tool, but they can also cure illnesses. Therefore, it is not so crazy that researchers are analyzing different possibilities to end cancers as aggressive as brain cancer. Is there already a vaccine?

Having brain cancer is difficult not only for patients, but also for families. The depression into which those diagnosed fall cause great anxiety as well as deep discomfort. This is what this article underlines  “Quality of life in brain tumor patients: The role of psychological variables”.

But maybe there is no need to worry too much. Several sources tell us that there is  a vaccine that could be the definitive solution to brain cancer. Now let’s take a look at the hopes and actions of this vaccine against the disease.

The vaccine for brain cancer

The Spanish newspaper El pais  published an article in December 2018 which discussed personalized vaccines for patients with brain cancer. This took place as part of a  study of a few people who reported encouraging results.

However, since the number of individuals who participated in the study was small, the researchers cannot say conclusively that they have found a cure for this type of cancer. Further research is needed to ensure the accuracy of the evidence.

Immunotherapy

Immunotherapy is a very important concept in this recently discovered vaccine. This term refers to the use of the body’s own defenses to target and attack brain cancer.

However, researchers have found that not  all tumors are exactly the same  and not all respond well to treatment with immunotherapy. Therefore, work has been done on “precision immunotherapy” to treat patients with glioblastoma.

An individualized vaccine

Glioblastoma is one of the cancers with the worst prognosis. Therefore, patients with this cancer at the time of the study needed a personalized vaccine to achieve favorable results.

So the best way is to design a vaccine with the antigens of the patient’s own tumor. This promotes a much more efficient immune response. Indeed, lymphocytes manage to recognize “malignant” cells and destroy them.

In research, experts found that patients responded favorably to the personalized vaccine rather than the generic vaccine. It is therefore not useful to design a vaccine for any type of tumor. To end brain cancer, the vaccine must indeed be individualized. 

Hopes for brain cancer

The advances made with regard to the different types of cancer and, more particularly against brain cancer, are quite encouraging. However,  only 30 people participated in the above-mentioned study.

It also raises the question of whether it would be  possible to study and create a personalized vaccine for each patient with brain cancer. Is it feasible? Would its cost be accessible to everyone?

Furthermore, it is important to mention that  research has not succeeded in destroying the cancer  of people who have it. In this regard, it is fundamental to note that they suffered from a rather aggressive type of cancer with a high mortality rate despite the treatments carried out.

Vaccine research then made it possible to increase the survival rate. According to El Pais , these patients usually only live for about 14 months. But the vaccine has raised that number to 29 months. Without a doubt, this is an encouraging figure that indicates that we are on the right track and that a definitive cure may be near.

Currently,  researchers continue to study various possibilities with the aim of putting an end to this disease  which, every year, kills thousands of people. So we hope that sooner than expected news will reach us about a vaccine that will completely eradicate cancer disease.

Children, adolescents, adults and the elderly suffer from cancers of different types. Undergoing chemotherapy or radiotherapy is an experience that will hopefully soon be resolved in a vaccine that is simple, accessible, reliable and effective.

And do you think we will eventually find a cure for cancer? Will this also be possible with more aggressive cancers like glioblastoma?