NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — A breakthrough in vaccine technology could be a new solution to treating cancer.
The same vaccine technology used to fight COVID-19 showed promising results in shrinking HPV tumors in mice, which is a potential breakthrough in the fight against cervical cancer.
According to the CDC, there are about 13,000 new cervical cancer diagnosis in the United States each year and about 4,000 women die from this disease. Hispanic women have the highest rate of developing this type of cancer and Black women have the highest rate of dying from it.
mRNA technology teaches our cells to make a protein which triggers an immune-response and produces antibodies. This is what was in the COVID-19 vaccine, but now it could help our bodies recognize and respond to the same cells that are in tumors and viruses.
Medical experts say this breakthrough in science is great news, and it could possibly treat other diseases too.
"I think the potential is actually huge. We have a great interest obviously in the oncology community in the cancer world. However, there's also an interest in autoimmune diseases potentially. And there are other means by which we might be able to use MRNA technology even in people who have certain deficiencies."
Currently no mRNA vaccine to fight cancer has been approved, but that can change if more money goes towards its development.
