mRNA Cancer Vaccine Shows Breakthrough Results, Faces US Funding Cuts

A personalised mRNA vaccine designed to train each patient's immune system to hunt and destroy melanoma cells has produced results that oncologists are calling transformative, with trial data showing the treatment can target the deadliest form of skin cancer with a precision no previous therapy has matched. The technology is a direct descendant of the mRNA platform developed for COVID-19 vaccines, now repurposed for oncology. The research is now colliding with sweeping cuts to NIH and FDA budgets under the Trump administration, creating uncertainty about whether US clinical trials can continue at their current pace. Thousands of patients — including in Europe — are waiting on expanded trial access.