China rushes to develop Moderna-style cancer vaccines amid market frenzy
A group of Hong Kong-listed biotechnology companies have seen their stock prices surge in the wake of Moderna’s breakthrough cancer vaccine trial, as the Chinese companies push forward with similar vaccine programmes. The companies – from Jiangsu Hengrui Pharmaceuticals to Li Ka-shing-backed CK Life Sciences – already have a slew of cancer vaccines in development, which could have a large…
Chinese biotech firms are racing to develop cancer vaccines in the wake of Moderna's breakthrough trial, driven by the market frenzy surrounding the biotechnology company's success. Jiangsu Hengrui Pharmaceuticals, CK Life Sciences, and Li Ka-shing-backed Everest Medicines are among the companies leading the charge. These firms currently possess a diverse portfolio of cancer vaccine candidates, which hold the potential for a vast market, given that nearly 2.6 million people in China succumb to cancer each year.
Analysts note that while China has built an extensive pipeline of over 100 cancer vaccine programs, the next hurdle is replicating Moderna's breakthrough across various tumor types. Traditional cancer vaccines aim to prevent cancer recurrence or treat existing tumors, while personalized mRNA vaccines trigger a patient's immune system to combat cancer cells.
CK Life Sciences, for instance, is developing "off-the-shelf, non-personalized vaccines" using circular RNA, a strategy that could make the treatment more accessible. Personalized cancer vaccines, however, entail extracting tumor samples from patients to identify specific mutations or neoantigens, which are then used to create a tailored vaccine for each individual patient.
Despite the challenges, companies like Beijing-based Likang Life Sciences, which has developed a personalized mRNA vaccine candidate, estimate the treatment could cost less than 100,000 yuan (US$14,900) for a six-dose course. Most cancer vaccine candidates in China are still in the early stages of clinical development, with firms such as Shanghai Regenelead Therapies, Hangzhou Newanjin Biotechnology, and Likang Life Sciences having initiated phase two trials for personalized mRNA cancer vaccines, according to a report by Zhongtai Securities.
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