Fascinating story: Tech Entrepreneur in Australia, using ChatGPT, AlphaFold, and a custom made mRNA vaccine, treats his dog's cancer. With the help of researchers (who all seem so excited) he was able to significantly reduce tumour size just weeks after the first injection

An Australian tech entrepreneur, Daniel C., has successfully used AI tools to create a personalized mRNA vaccine that significantly shrank his dog's terminal cancer tumor. Faced with his dog Bella's grim prognosis from a rare, aggressive cancer, he leveraged ChatGPT to research immunology and AlphaFold, DeepMind's protein structure prediction AI, to model potential neoantigens. Partnering with researchers, he designed a vaccine targeting tumor-specific markers, which was then synthesized and administered.

The treatment resulted in a dramatic 50% reduction in tumor size within weeks of the first injection, a response far exceeding expectations. This DIY biohacking project, detailed in The Australian, compressed a process that typically takes pharmaceutical companies over a year into just a few months. While not a controlled clinical trial, the case provides a compelling proof-of-concept for using accessible AI to rapidly prototype and deploy personalized therapies.

The story highlights a growing trend of citizen science empowered by powerful, publicly available AI models. It underscores the potential for AI to democratize aspects of drug discovery and development, potentially accelerating treatments for both veterinary and human medicine. However, experts caution that such approaches require rigorous validation and oversight to ensure safety and efficacy.