Vaccine could prevent some forms of colon cancer

Scientists are developing new treatments designed to train your immune system to destroy early colon growths long before they can develop into tumors.

admin August 7, 2026 2 minutes read

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FILE-A doctor reviews a cancer x-ray. (Photo By BSIP/UIG Via Getty Images)

Scientists are creating a vaccine to teach the immune system to intercept a form of colon cancer before it transitions to a tumor.

The Associated Press reported that about three potential Lynch syndrome vaccines are in development, including two in early clinical trials in the U.S. and a third in Britain.

Lynch syndrome is a gene passed from a parent that puts them at very high risk of colorectal cancer and more susceptible to certain other cancers.

Potential vaccines to stop gene-caused cancer

Why you should care:

In a first-step study, a Houston doctor and 44 other Lynch syndrome carriers tested a vaccine made by Swiss biotech Nouscom that teaches the immune system to detect abnormalities in Lynch-caused precancers.

Referencing the MD Anderson team reported in Nature Medicine, The Associated Press noted that this amped up tumor-eliminating T cells and a year later, colonoscopies showed fewer precancerous growths and no advanced polyps.

RELATED: Colorectal cancer: Symptoms and what causes it

Additionally, Oxford University researchers are starting initial testing of a similar approach to attack Lynch-spurred precancers, a vaccine made by Massachusetts-based Moderna using the mRNA technology behind its COVID-19 shot.

And scientists are awaiting results from a slightly larger study comparing California-based ImmunityBio’s Tri-Ad5 vaccine, which flags some different cancer markers, to a placebo.

Is Lynch syndrome linked to a rise in young adult colon cancer?

Dig deeper:

Roughly 158,000 people are diagnosed with colorectal cancer in the U.S. annually, most of them over 50 years old, and cases in younger adults are rising.

RELATED: Prostate cancer – symptoms, risk factors, and treatment

Lynch syndrome affects about 1 in 279 people. For the average person, U.S. guidelines call for routine colorectal cancer screening — with a colonoscopy or other kinds of tests — to begin at age 45.

However, at any age, it’s recommended to get a checkup for symptoms like blood in stool or rectal bleeding; changes in bowel habits such as diarrhea, constipation or narrowing of stool that lasts more than a few days; unintended weight loss; and cramps or abdominal pain.