Merck-Moderna Vaccine Shows Promise Against Melanoma Recurrence

A promising personalized mRNA vaccine jointly developed by Merck and Moderna has shown signs of preventing cancer from returning or spreading in high-risk melanoma patients.

The vaccine, known as intismeran, was tested in combination with Merck's cancer drug Keytruda in over 1,100 patients with melanoma whose tumors had been surgically removed. The results showed that the vaccine-drug combo met the study's main goal of significantly extending the time patients lived without the deadly form of skin cancer returning.

The treatment also reduced the risk of cancer spreading to other parts of the body, and no new safety concerns were detected during the three-year trial. This is a major milestone for the partnership between Merck and Moderna, which has been studying personalized mRNA cancer vaccines since 2016.