Moderna and Merck's Melanoma Vaccine Shows Promising Results
Moderna and Merck's shares surged after their joint personalized cancer vaccine showed promising results in a late-stage trial. The vaccine, called intismeran autogene, helped cut melanoma recurrences by more than half when combined with Merck's immune drug Keytruda.
The trial met its main goal of showing that the vaccine and Keytruda reduced melanoma recurrences compared to Keytruda alone. It also met a key secondary goal of slowing cancer spread to new areas of the body.
Moderna's stock more than doubled in pre-market trading, while Merck rose almost 9%.
The companies plan to discuss filing for approval with regulators and will present data at an upcoming medical meeting. Moderna CEO Stéphane Bancel said the product could be approved as soon as 2027, depending on regulatory review.