Which department is it? The Department of War or Defense? Is it the Gulf of Mexico, or is it the Gulf of America? A vaccine–or an “individualized neoantigen treatment”?
Moderna’s plans to develop next-generation mRNA flu vaccines, as well as vaccines for emerging pathogens and influenzas were thwarted by the vaccine-skeptics within the federal government. The Massachusetts biotech company has been pushed to the breaking point by canceled contracts and regulators who are not friendly.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was the head of Health and Human Services at that time.
He focused on mRNA and cut off support to dozens of projects, including a $776-million award Moderna received for its bird-flu vaccine. In January of this year, Moderna warned that it may have to abandon its late-stage program to create vaccines for infections.
Moderna is now focusing on a new area. It has been working with Merck to use its mRNA-based technology in a promising cancer vaccine technique.
A spokesperson from Merck interrupted me before I could say the V-word. It’s an individualized neoantigen treatment.
It’s a vaccination.
Here’s the way it works. Moderna analyzes the cancer cells of a patient to identify their most obnoxious, peculiar molecules. It then packages these same molecules (called neoantigens) into a single shot. Immune system of the patient has orders to kill any cell with these icky surface markers.
It’s very similar in terms of its mechanism to covid-19. The only difference is that it’s a vaccine against cancer and not a viral.
It looks as if a breakthrough is possible. Moderna and Merck demonstrated that these shots reduced the risk of a patient with the most deadly form of skin carcinoma dying from a recurrence following surgery by half.
Moderna no longer refers to the cancer shot as a vaccine in its official communications.
This includes regulatory filings. In 2023, Moderna rebranded its technology as an individualized neoantigen treatment (INT) in partnership with Merck. Moderna CEO stated at the time the name change was made to better describe the goals of the program.
It’s not a prevention measure, but a therapeutic treatment.
It’s not a secret that the second goal of this campaign is to separate important innovations from fearmongering about vaccines, which was incited by senior US officials. Kyle Holen is the head of Moderna’s Cancer Program. He said that although vaccines may be a dirty term today, we believe in harnessing our immune systems to fight not only infections but also cancers.
Word games are not for everyone. Take Ryan Sullivan. He is a doctor at Massachusetts General Hospital, who has enrolled his patients into Moderna’s clinical trials.
The change, he says, raises concerns about whether the trial participants are properly informed. “There’s some worry that patients will refuse to receive treatment for their cancers because the vaccine is a vaccination,” Sullivan said. But I felt, like many of my co-workers, it was also important to name it as it is.
Is it really worth it to go on the floor for just a few words? Lillian Siu is a medical oncologist who works at Princess Margaret Cancer Centre in Toronto. She has been involved in the safety testing of the new vaccines.
She thinks name changes are acceptable, “if they allow research to continue.”
Holen said that the main reason for the Moderna doctors’ complaints was to defend the vaccines, which are among the most important public health interventions ever. They wanted to see the company stand firm.
It’s just not true. Moderna published its latest results in February and the main text of the article did not use the term “vaccine”. The term “vaccine” was used only in footnotes, such as the title of older papers or patents.
This could all be an indication that Kennedy’s plan is working. Kennedy’s agencies seem to focus on mRNA vaccinations, hinder their spread, reduce their value for the companies and marginalize their defenders.
Moderna may also be successful in its strategy. The government, so far at least, has not said much about Moderna’s neoantigen therapy, or its cancer vaccine.
The Checkup published this article originally. MIT Technology Review’s Weekly biotech newsletter Receive it every Thursday and get articles such as this one first.
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