Moderna-Merck Cancer Vaccine Success Triggers Oncology Rally
The recent success of Moderna and Merck's personalized mRNA cancer vaccine has sparked a rally in oncology stocks, including SLS and IBRX. The Phase 3 trial of Intismeran Autogene showed that patients with high-risk melanoma who received the vaccine remained cancer-free longer and had delayed disease progression compared to those on Keytruda alone.
Morningstar raised its 2035 Intismeran sales forecast to $16.8 billion, citing the 'good sign' of early Phase 3 success. The brokerage also increased its assumed probability of melanoma approval to 100% and lifted the figure for lung cancer to 60%. Goldman Sachs called the readout the 'initial unlock' for Moderna's cancer business.
Sellas Life Sciences (SLS) is developing a cancer vaccine, Galinpepimut-S (GPS), which targets WT1 and has been tested with Keytruda. ImmunityBio's Anktiva activates natural killer cells and T cells, and the company has tested it in combination with checkpoint inhibitors in lung cancer.