Messenger RNA vaccines, cancer, and the next pandemic
Ignorance, fanaticism, and vested interests have sought to discredit vaccines , something that has been known since the first vaccine appeared in the 18th century. This self-serving and anti-scientific attitude has worsened in recent years with the emergence of messenger RNA vaccines .
The greatest medical- scientific discovery of recent times. A tool available for the development of personalized vaccines against cancer and other catastrophic diseases, and for confronting another likely pandemic in the future.
Messenger RNA technologyThe COVID-19 experience was devastating, but also a scientific turning point. In less than a year, the world went from emergency to mass vaccination thanks to the use of messenger RNA , a technology that had been developed for more than a decade and found its opportunity in the crisis.
The Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines , both mRNA-based, demonstrated greater than 90% efficacy in preventing severe disease in their early studies (Polack et al., NEJM , 2020).
But it should also be made clear that intramuscular vaccines have limitations, as they cannot induce a robust response at the mucosal level and do not provide sufficient protection at the virus's entry point, which is the upper respiratory tract.
The approach has shifted. Scientists around the world are now working on alternative platforms such as intranasal, oral, and intradermal vaccines , which promise to induce local mucosal immunity and block viral transmission from the outset.
A recent study in Science Translational Medicine (2023) showed that a viral vector-based intranasal vaccine significantly reduced SARS-CoV-2 transmission in animal models.
The United States has taken a decisive step with Project NextGen , an initiative led by the Biomedical Advanced Research Development Authority (BARDA), which allocates more than $5 billion to accelerate a new generation of longer-lasting, universal, single-dose, and easy-to-administer vaccines .
These innovations not only seek to protect against COVID-19 , but also to anticipate new variants and other emerging respiratory viruses. The vision is ambitious: to develop a "universal vaccine" that targets multiple strains and diseases and reduces the need for frequent boosters.
Despite criticism, scientific progress continues.
But it must go hand in hand with public policies that guarantee equitable access for the population to vaccines , distribution infrastructure and social trust, openness to research and technology with investment, if we do not want to remain on the periphery of the solution again.
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