HPV cancer vaccine slows tumor growth, extends survival in animal models

NIH’s Bhattacharya acknowledges absence of causal link between vaccines and autism

Pressed by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), NIH Director Jay Bhattacharya acknowledged that he is not aware of any study pointing to a causal link between vaccines and autism.

Could mRNA vaccines hold the key to building an affordable universal cancer vaccine?

“I believe in the concept of a universal cancer vaccine,” said Elias Sayour, a pediatric oncologist at the University of Florida. “I think if this fails in a prospective phase III trial, I still believe we can engineer a vaccine that works prospectively.”

January 14, 2026

Vol.52 No.1

Clinical

A planned randomized trial will ask an intriguing question: Do COVID vaccines potentiate checkpoint inhibitors?

A phase III clinical trial will soon begin testing the evidence collected thus far that points to a stunning prospect: the COVID-19 vaccine—a widely accessible mRNA vaccine already on the market—could make checkpoint inhibitors work better for lung cancer and melanoma patients.

January 09, 2026

Vol.52 No.1

By Sara Willa Ernst and Jacquelyn Cobb

Cancer Policy

CDC scales back childhood vaccine schedule

On Jan. 5, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released a scaled-back childhood vaccine schedule that slashed the number of diseases that the institution recommends all children get immunized against—from 17 to 11.

HRSA releases updated cervical cancer screening guidelines

The Health Resources and Services Administration released updated cervical cancer screening guidelines that include a new option for women to self-collect samples for screening.

January 09, 2026

Vol.52 No.1

Cancer Policy

Former FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb speaks out against CDC vaccine panel

Scott Gottlieb, a former FDA commissioner, said a recent decision by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices’ to change its recommendation for when children should receive the hepatitis B vaccine is another sign of the ACIP’s diminished credibility as a scientific authority.

December 12, 2025

Vol.51 No.45

By Sara Willa Ernst