Moderna and Merck report positive results in personalized skin cancer vaccine trial

Moderna and Merck said a late-stage clinical trial of their personalized mRNA melanoma vaccine, Intismeran autogene, produced positive interim results when used alongside Merck's Keytruda. The vaccine met its primary goal of extending recurrence-free survival and a secondary goal of reducing the cancer's spread to distant organs in patients whose tumors had been surgically removed. The Phase 3 study enrolled 1,137 high-risk melanoma patients. The vaccine is designed by analyzing mutations in each patient's tumor, with the aim of training the immune system to recognize and attack cancer cells. The companies said detailed data would be presented at an upcoming medical conference. Earlier Phase 2 results had shown the vaccine, in combination with Keytruda, reduced the risk of cancer recurrence or death by 49% compared with Keytruda alone. Following the announcement, Moderna's shares rose about 50% and Merck's gained roughly 2%. Moderna and Merck are also testing the vaccine candidate in other cancer types, including lung, bladder and kidney cancers. No further details on regulatory timelines or approval plans were immediately available.