Moderna Stock Soars on Melanoma Trial Hopes Amid AI Development Debate

Moderna's stock has had an impressive year, up by over 574% so far, with investors eagerly awaiting detailed results from its Phase 3 melanoma trial. The study tested Intismeran, a personalized mRNA therapy developed by Moderna and Merck, in combination with Keytruda in patients whose high-risk melanoma had been surgically removed.

According to Laidlaw analyst Yale Jen, the U.S. may still have an edge over China in AI-driven drug development. He argues that successful drugs and diagnostics matter more than the number of partner deals, which he believes is a key metric often overlooked.

Jen points out that while there are more U.S. AI-associated drug programs in Phase 3 development than Chinese ones, reaching this stage does not guarantee success. He suggests that the actual figure of recurrence-free survival (RFS) and distant metastasis-free survival (DMFS) could potentially have a positive impact on Moderna's shares.

Moderna's personalized cancer therapy may face commercial hurdles even if its clinical results remain strong, according to Jen. Tailoring the therapy to each patient's tumor may be costly and time-consuming, while broader use could strain manufacturing capacity.