A Personalized mRNA Vaccine Offers Hope Against Pancreatic Cancer—But Researchers Still Seek Answers

Study the questions and tasks

Work through the material below, or start the interactive practice above to complete an attempt. Try the exercises before opening any answer or transcript sections, then use them to review your work.

Practice level

C2. Try this level if you can follow the instructions and understand most of the language; choose an earlier level if you need more support.

Question formats

Single choice

How to approach this practice

Read the questions, then listen before opening the transcript. Notice names, numbers and any corrections the speaker makes.

1. Question 1 · Single choice

   Choose one answer.

   What happened before Gustafson received the vaccine?

   Return to the passage, recording or visual
   1. Researchers first analyzed samples from her tumor.
   2. She first completed a nationwide skin-cancer trial.
   3. She first received treatment for brain cancer.
   4. Researchers first observed seven surviving participants.
   Check answers and explanations

   Answer

   Researchers first analyzed samples from her tumor.

   The vaccine was prepared from samples taken from her tumor.

   Gustafson received a personalized vaccine made from samples of her tumor.

2. Question 2 · Single choice

   Choose one answer.

   How many vaccine doses did Gustafson receive?

   Return to the passage, recording or visual
   1. Six
   2. Eight
   3. Nine
   4. Sixteen
   Check answers and explanations

   Answer

   Nine

   The account specifies nine doses alongside surgery and chemotherapy.

   Gustafson received nine doses, as well as surgery and chemotherapy.

3. Question 3 · Single choice

   Choose one answer.

   What happened to seven of the apparent responders?

   Return to the passage, recording or visual
   1. They received no additional treatment.
   2. They were still alive at publication.
   3. They developed a different cancer.
   4. They withdrew before receiving surgery.
   Check answers and explanations

   Answer

   They were still alive at publication.

   Seven remained alive when the account was published.

   The vaccine appeared to work in half of the participants; seven of those eight patients were still alive when the account was published.

4. Question 4 · Single choice

   Choose one answer.

   What did the skin-cancer trial report over two years?

   Return to the passage, recording or visual
   1. A 42 percent reduction in recurrence and death
   2. A 50 percent increase in pancreatic survival
   3. A 16 percent reduction in treatment access
   4. A seven-year extension of every patient’s life
   Check answers and explanations

   Answer

   A 42 percent reduction in recurrence and death

   The reported reduction concerned both recurrence and death.

   Merck and Moderna recently reported results from a major trial involving skin cancer, describing a 42 percent reduction in recurrence and death over two years.

5. Question 5 · Single choice

   Choose one answer.

   Which cancers are named as targets of similar strategies?

   Return to the passage, recording or visual
   1. Liver, bone, ovarian, and colon cancers
   2. Lung, kidney, bladder, and brain cancers
   3. Skin, pancreatic, blood, and breast cancers
   4. Thyroid, prostate, cervical, and liver cancers
   Check answers and explanations

   Answer

   Lung, kidney, bladder, and brain cancers

   The recording lists four additional cancer types under investigation.

   Similar vaccine strategies are being tested against lung, kidney, bladder, and brain cancers.

6. Question 6 · Single choice

   Choose one answer.

   What is the intended function of genomic analysis and artificial intelligence?

   Return to the passage, recording or visual
   1. To identify targets separating cancerous cells from healthy tissue
   2. To replace surgery with exercise and dietary changes
   3. To determine which patients live in Florida
   4. To calculate the age of every trial participant
   Check answers and explanations

   Answer

   To identify targets separating cancerous cells from healthy tissue

   They help identify targets distinguishing malignant from healthy cells.

   These efforts combine mRNA with genomic analysis and artificial intelligence to identify targets that may distinguish cancerous cells from healthy tissue.

7. Question 7 · Single choice

   Choose one answer.

   What does the author emphasize with “For now, however”?

   Return to the passage, recording or visual
   1. The research has reached a definitive endpoint.
   2. The promising field still has important uncertainties.
   3. The treatment has failed outside Florida.
   4. The trial has been expanded to every cancer.
   Check answers and explanations

   Answer

   The promising field still has important uncertainties.

   The phrase marks a qualification limiting the preceding optimism.

   For now, however, Gustafson’s experience remains an exceptional result within a field whose potential is substantial but whose limits are not yet fully understood.

8. Question 8 · Single choice

   Choose one answer.

   What is the broader scientific aim described near the end?

   Return to the passage, recording or visual
   1. To make immune responses more precisely targeted
   2. To eliminate the need for genomic research
   3. To standardize every patient’s tumor biology
   4. To limit vaccines to pancreatic cancer
   Check answers and explanations

   Answer

   To make immune responses more precisely targeted

   Researchers seek greater precision in immune-system attacks.

   The broader ambition is to make the immune system more precise in its attack.

What to review next

Listen again to difficult sections, then open the transcript to check what you heard. Repeat a useful phrase aloud and try the recording once more without the text.

A focused practice result shows how you did on these tasks. Use several activities across skills to decide what to study next; one practice score does not certify an overall CEFR level.

Before you practise: a worked example

Listen for the final information, especially when a speaker corrects or changes an earlier statement.

Example transcript: “Let’s meet at five — actually, half past five would be better.” What is the final suggested time?

The final suggested time is 5:30. Actually signals a correction; the first time is replaced by the later suggestion.

This teaching example is separate from the scored questions. After your test, compare any mistakes with the explanation and revisit the topic before trying again.