Canadian company Providence Therapeutics is supporting a world-first clinical trial evaluating personalised mRNA cancer vaccines for children with advanced and treatment-resistant brain tumours.
The PaedNEO-VAX trial, funded by Providence Therapeutics, in combination with the Australian Government and philanthropic donors, is the first multi-site paediatric study to test individualized mRNA vaccines designed specifically for each child’s cancer.
The trial is co-led by The University of Queensland and the South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute (SAHMRI) and will begin in March 2026 across seven paediatric hospitals in Queensland, South Australia, New South Wales, Victoria, and Western Australia. It is sponsored by the Australia & New Zealand Children’s Haematology and Oncology Group (ANZCHOG).
Providence Therapeutics is contributing its proprietary mRNA vaccine platform to support the creation of personalised vaccines tailored to each patient’s tumour biology.
PaedNEO-VAX is open to children and adolescents with relapsed or refractory high-grade brain tumours, including high-grade glioma, diffuse midline glioma, medulloblastoma, and ependymoma.
Phase I will establish safety and optimal dosing, while phase II will evaluate clinical outcomes such as disease progression, survival, and quality of life for patients and families.
Using genome sequencing and advanced data analysis, tumour-specific targets will be identified for each child. Customised mRNA vaccines will then be manufactured in Australia by Southern RNA, with an expected turnaround of approximately 10 weeks from enrolment to dosing.
“In 2013, my 13-year-old son Adam was diagnosed with glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) and given about 12 months to live. We were fortunate that we were able to get him into remission, and in 2015 I founded Providence Therapeutics with the mission to be ready if his cancer came back,” said Brad Sorenson, founder and CEO of Providence Therapeutics.
“In early 2024, that horrible day came when his GBM recurred in his brainstem and throughout his spine, and we rushed to make a personalised vaccine for him. Adam was the first person to receive a Providence cancer vaccine, and he responded remarkably well. It is a rare good-news story, and he is still doing well today. Providence’s mission today is to see Adam’s success shared as widely as possible.
“This trial embodies our mantra of ‘Where Hope and Science Intersect.’ After more than a decade of scientific work, Providence is honoured to help bring hope to families facing devastating diagnoses. We are proud to support this world-first paediatric trial in Australia and hopeful that it will pave the way for similar initiatives in Canada and throughout the world.”
Providence Therapeutics views the trial as both a scientific breakthrough and a model for collaboration.
Following the Australian example, Providence welcomes dialogue with Canadian and US leaders, cancer foundations, and cancer research organizations interested in exploring how similar cancer vaccine programmes could be advanced in Canada and the US.