One of the saddest stories coming out of the COVID pandemic is the way the Nobel Prize winning mRNA vaccine has been represented by some in the media. How and why mRNA vaccines were vilified is an interesting story for another time.
But here is some exciting news. We know how well mRNA vaccines worked against COVID. It is estimated some 20M lives were saved worldwide with 2.5M just in the US. But mRNA vaccines offer much more than hope as vaccines against viruses. There is mounting evidence of efficacy in genetic diseases and cancers. Studies are ongoing all over the world examining the possibility that mRNA can used to treat a myriad of awful diseases and the news is exciting.
Take pancreatic cancer for example, one of the worst cancers anyone can have the misfortune to develop. Although there has been progress over my 50 years in medicine, pancreatic cancer is still a death sentence for most victims. It comes on fast and kills fast, all in about 3-6 months. I have had the unpleasant burden of diagnosing and caring for many patients with this horrible disease.
That’s why the news about research showing a favorable immune response against pancreatic cancer after mRNA vaccinations targeting that disease are so exciting. We are on the cusp of something very exciting - an entirely new way to treat cancer.
If this news causes you cognitive dissonance because you have been led to believe mRNA was something awful, you may want to consider that you have been lied to and manipulated for your vote. At a course I took at Harvard Medical School recently, the course Chair named the top five medical advances of the past year and yes, mRNA was among them.
I will leave you with these questions. Where did the anti mRNA noise originate? Who started the vilification of it?