Merck's Cancer Vaccine Breakthrough Sends Stock Soaring

Pharmaceutical company Merck's (NYSE:MRK) shares surged 11.3% in afternoon trading after it and partner Moderna announced a late-stage trial success for their personalized mRNA cancer vaccine, intismeran autogene. This combination with Merck's immunotherapy drug Keytruda met its primary goal of recurrence-free survival in patients with high-risk cancer.

The Phase 3 trial also hit a key secondary goal of distant metastasis-free survival, indicating the treatment reduced the spread of cancer. Compared to using Keytruda alone, this combination significantly lowered the risk of cancer recurrence or death.

MERCK's shares have been relatively stable, with only five moves greater than 5% over the last year. The company has set a new 52-week high at $151.25 per share and is up 42.1% since the beginning of the year.