Moderna stock rockets more than 90% after cancer vaccine succeeds in late-stage trial
Moderna's personalized mRNA vaccine, combined with Merck's Keytruda, reduced melanoma recurrence and met a secondary goal for preventing the disease from spreading.
Moderna's mRNA vaccine combined with Merck's Keytruda immunotherapy succeeded in a late-stage trial for skin cancer, the companies said Wednesday, sending Moderna shares up more than 90% and sharply lifting investor expectations for the vaccine maker's cancer business.
The study is still ongoing, but interim results showed that the treatment, Intismeran, met both its primary goal of reducing cancer recurrence and its secondary goal of preventing the disease from spreading to other parts of the body.
The results mark a significant development for Moderna as it seeks to diversify beyond its COVID-19 vaccine. The company recently added an FDA-approved flu vaccine to its portfolio and is also developing experimental vaccines for diseases including norovirus and Lyme disease.
Analysts had identified the cancer vaccine as an important potential catalyst for Moderna, with the results potentially strengthening investor sentiment toward the company. Last month, Barclays analysts estimated that the therapy could generate about $3 billion in annual revenue from melanoma treatment by 2035.
The treatment combines Merck's Keytruda with a personalized mRNA vaccine from Moderna, tailored to mutations identified in each patient's tumor.
The late-stage trial enrolled 1,137 patients with high-risk stage IIB to IV melanoma whose tumors had been surgically removed. Participants were randomly assigned to receive up to nine doses of Keytruda combined with the personalized vaccine or Keytruda alone over roughly one year.
The companies said no new safety signals have emerged from the trial.
In January, Moderna and Merck reported results from a mid-stage trial showing that the treatment reduced the risk of cancer recurrence or death by 49% after five years.
The companies said they will present the latest results at an upcoming medical meeting and share them with regulators.
Melanoma is the deadliest form of skin cancer. More than 1.5 million people in the United States were living with melanoma in 2023, according to the National Cancer Institute.
The results could provide Moderna with one of its clearest paths to a major new commercial opportunity since the collapse of demand for COVID-19 vaccines. The scale of the market opportunity, however, will depend on the final trial results and regulatory decisions.
