'Golden age' of medical research is offering fresh hope to beat killer disease...2024 WAS 'YEAR OF THE CANCER VACCINE

EXPERTS have hailed 2024 as the "year of the cancer vaccine" in celebration of an explosion of progress that offers hope to millions of patients.

- Hanna Geissler

They have predicted "a groundswell of change" after research was dramatically accelerated by the pandemic and trials began recruiting thousands of volunteers.

In what has been called a "golden age" of developments, Cancer Research UK said more products and projects than ever were receiving funding, meaning vaccines for the disease were "going through a renaissance" said: Dr Catherine Elliott, its director of research, "We've seen a significant number of presentations at conferences, new targets being identified, some really exciting trial results that have come out.

"Then the investment from Moderna and BioNTech in the UK, in the NHS Cancer Vaccine Launch Pad, really emphasised the commitment of the industry and pharmaceutical companies to developing these vaccines.

"Very few new, innovative treatments will get to patients without that commercial investment alongside funding from people like ourselves. All of that has been very exciting and we're seeing this increasing interest coming through in new targets and opportunities." Michelle Mitchell, the charity's chief executive, said: "The powerful promise of cancer vaccines has dominated headlines in 2024, confirming we are living in a golden age of cancer research." Cancer vaccines such as the HPV jab are aimed at preventing the disease developing altogether.

But research is now also advancing into vaccines which can prevent cancer recurring after treatment.

Cancer develops when cells start growing abnormally and the body fails to identify and remove them.

Tumour cells almost always have unusual proteins and markers on their surfaces.

Dr Elliott said: "The benefit of this is we can then identify those and prime the immune system so it does recognise those particular abnormal proteins. That's how, in essence, the mRNA vaccines work.