BBC Radio 4's Inside Science examines whether the "era of the cancer vaccine" has arrived, following an announcement this week from pharmaceutical firms Merck (known as MSD in Europe) and Moderna that a personalised cancer vaccine has significantly improved outcomes for melanoma patients. Cancer cell biologist Anne Willis of the Medical Research Council joins presenter Tom Whipple to unpack what the development actually means and how close such treatments are to becoming widely available. The topic matters because effective cancer vaccines could mark a major shift in how aggressive skin cancers, and potentially other tumours, are treated.

The episode also previews the Royal Society Trivedi Book Prize, science publishing's most prestigious non-fiction award, with the first of several weekly author interviews featuring Kit Chapman discussing his book "Age of Alchemy". Science journalist Penny Sarchet rounds off the programme with a selection of notable findings drawn from recent scientific journals. The 28-minute episode is available on BBC Sounds for 35 days.