a16z General Partner Jorge Conde sits down with Moderna CEO Stéphane Bancel to discuss a major milestone for mRNA technology: positive Phase 3 results from Moderna and Merck’s individualized treatment for melanoma, after more than a decade of work on personalized cancer vaccines.
Stéphane explains how the treatment works by sequencing an individual patient’s tumor and healthy cells, identifying the mutations most relevant to their cancer, and encoding up to 34 of them into an mRNA designed specifically for that patient. Rather than simply unleashing the immune system, the goal is to teach it exactly what to recognize and attack.
They also unpack the engineering challenge of manufacturing a different medicine for every patient, how Moderna has brought the process down to roughly 42 days from biopsy to treatment, and what it would take to manufacture personalized medicines at scale. Finally, Stéphane looks beyond melanoma to lung, kidney, bladder, pancreatic, and gastric cancers, as well as Moderna’s longer-term work applying mRNA to rare genetic and autoimmune diseases.
&nbsp;
Resources:
Follow Stéphane Bancel on LinkedIn: <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/st%C3%A9phane-bancel-8185251/" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://www.linkedin.com/in/st%C3%A9phane-bancel-8185251/</a>
Follow Jorge Conde on X: <a href="https://x.com/JorgeCondeBio" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://x.com/JorgeCondeBio</a>

 &nbsp;
&nbsp;

 &nbsp;
Stay Updated:Find a16z on YouTube: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/@a16z">YouTube</a>Find a16z on <a href="https://x.com/a16z">X</a>Find a16z on<a href="https://www.linkedin.com/company/a16z"> LinkedIn</a>Listen to the a16z Show on <a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/5bC65RDvs3oxnLyqqvkUYX?si=3E8B3qT9TyiwAHJ7JnaKbg">Spotify</a>Listen to the a16z Show on <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/a16z-podcast/id842818711">Apple Podcasts</a>Follow our host: <a href="https://twitter.com/eriktorenberg">https://twitter.com/eriktorenberg</a> Please note that the content here is for informational purposes only; should NOT be taken as legal, business, tax, or investment advice or be used to evaluate any investment or security; and is not directed at any investors or potential investors in any a16z fund. a16z and its affiliates may maintain investments in the companies discussed. For more details please see a16z.com/disclosures. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See <a href="https://pcm.adswizz.com">pcm.adswizz.com</a> for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Podurama

Home

Trending

Personal

Your Podcasts

New Episodes

My Files

Favourite Episodes

Tags (Folders)

Recently Played

Bookmarks

Followed Playlists

Inside Moderna’s Personalized Cancer Vaccine

The a16z Show

AI Chapters

AI Insights

Reviews