Pancreatic cancer is an especially virulent form of the disease, making it the deadliest cancer, according to the American Cancer Society. So when a vaccine being developed by CWRU researchers eradicated all traces of the disease in early trials, the results surprised even the research team.

In preclinical trials, which generally test novel treatments on isolated cell cultures or animals, a vaccine eliminated the cancer in more than half of the targets.

“Pancreatic cancer is super aggressive. So it came as a surprise that our approach works so well,” said Zheng-Rong “Z.R.” Lu, a professor of biomedical engineering in the Case School of Engineering.

Lu, a specialist in nano materials, worked with immunologist Li Lily Wang, an associate professor of molecular medicine in the CWRU School of Medicine, to develop vaccines that produce cancer immunity. They are targeting the most common mutations seen in PDAC tumor cells, using nanoparticles loaded with antigens that trigger the immune system to attack and destroy the cancer. More than half of patients tested were cancer-free months later, the pair reported.

“This platform has the potential to transform clinical care for this devastating disease,” said Wang, who is also a staff member in translational hematology and oncology research at Cleveland Clinic.

More research awaits, but the team has been awarded more than $3 million from the National Cancer Institute to develop and advance the vaccine. Preclinical trials to further test efficacy and safety are planned, after which the team is expected to begin human trials.