Russian President Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin recently claimed that his country was very close to making cancer vaccines! In mid-February 2024, the President declared that patients would receive the vaccine very soon. The Russian strongman reportedly said: “We have come very close to the creation of so-called cancer vaccines and immunomodulatory drugs of a new generation. I hope that soon they will be effectively used as methods of individual therapy.“

The President expressed hope that the advancement in Medical Science would help swift transition into effective methods of individualised therapy. His announcement signifies a remarkable stride forward in medical innovation, offering hope for enhanced cancer treatment options worldwide.

Meanwhile, President Putin did not specify the vaccines would prevent what type of cancer, and how. It may be noted that many countries (apart from Russia) and organisations are currently working on cancer vaccines. Britain signed a deal with German pharmaceutical company BioNTech in 2023 to manufacture cancer vaccines for at least 10,000 patients by 2030. Two other pharmaceutical companies, Moderna and Merck & Co., have also created experimental cancer vaccines. A latest study has revealed that those vaccines reduce the risk of death from skin cancer.

In 2023, the Western media reported that President Putin had contracted cancer and his health condition was constantly deteriorating. A video, too, went viral on social media that showed the Russian President being unable to control his twitching feet during a meeting with President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko. Later, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov denied the claim, saying that the President was fully fit. “I can tell you that he has no doubles, and with regards to work and so on, this is already an absurd informational hoax that is discussed by some media with vigorous tenacity. It makes me nothing but smile,” added Peskov.

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), there are currently six licensed vaccines against Human Papillomavirus (HPV). Some types of HPVs can cause health problems, including genital warts and cancers. If Russia manages to manufacture cancer vaccines, it would certainly help India to get the number of patients down. As per a new study published in The Lancet Regional Health Southeast Asia journal, the South Asian nation registered about 1.2 million new cancer cases in 2019, while 0.93 million patients perished. With this, India became the second highest contributor to the disease burden in Asia in the year 2019.

Earlier, Russia developed Sputnik V vaccine against coronavirus and exported it to a number of countries during the COVID-19 Pandemic. Interestingly, Russia experienced widespread public reluctance to get vaccinated at that time. In a bid to assure his countrymen of the efficacy and safety of the vaccine, Putin stated that he himself had taken Sputnik V.

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Published by Koushik Das

Koushik Das (born on May 16, 1976 in Kolkata) is a career journalist. Based in the Indian capital of New Delhi, Koushik writes mainly about foreign policies and current geopolitical issues, and rarely about other topics. His own political ideas are highly influenced by Antonio Gramsci, Louis Althusser, Michel Foucault, Michael Oakeshott and others. English philosopher and political theorist Oakeshott (Dec 11, 1901-Dec 19, 1990) says that “in political activity, men sail a boundless and bottomless sea. There is neither harbour for shelter nor floor for anchorage, neither starting-place, nor appointed destination. But we have to keep afloat”. (Rationalism in Politics, 1962) As a student of Political Science, Koushik loves to share his views on issues, which have great impacts on his thought process (and also on India, South Asia and of course on the global community), with his readers through his website – Boundless Ocean of Politics. By doing so, he tries to keep himself afloat. You will find some of his articles in https://inserbia.info/today/ (https://inserbia.info/today/author/kou_das13_i/), as he has been trying to assess the global geopolitics since 2003. You can also mail him at kousdas@gmail.com View all posts by Koushik Das