Merck and Moderna's Cancer Vaccine Breakthrough Fuels Precision Medicine ETF Surge
Pharmaceutical giants Merck and Moderna have announced positive results from their Phase 3 trial of an individualized mRNA-based neoantigen therapy, intismeran autogene, in patients with stage IIB-IV melanoma. The combination of intismeran and Keytruda, a medication developed by Merck, showed statistically significant improvements in recurrence-free survival and distant metastasis-free survival compared to Keytruda alone.
This breakthrough has significant implications for the mRNA investment thesis, which had largely been defined by COVID-19 vaccines. The therapy represents the first positive Phase 3 readout for an individualized mRNA cancer treatment.
The companies have been working on this therapy since 2016 and split development costs and profits equally. For Moderna, this breakthrough offers a path beyond COVID products, while for Merck, it could strengthen its oncology franchise. Keytruda generated $31.7 billion in sales last year, making successful personalized cancer vaccines an important long-term growth driver.
The results have sparked interest in ETFs tied to precision medicine names, with the iShares Genomics Immunology and Healthcare ETF (IDNA) surging 13% on Wednesday. The ARK Genomic Revolution ETF (ARKG) gained 64% so far this year and offers a more aggressive version of the trade.