Moderna-Merck Melanoma Vaccine Succeeds

Moderna and Merck said intismeran, a personalized mRNA cancer vaccine, met its main goal in a Phase 3 trial of more than 1,100 high-risk melanoma patients whose detectable tumors had been surgically removed. Given with Merck’s immunotherapy Keytruda, the shot extended the time before melanoma returned and also reduced spread to distant parts of the body. The vaccine is built from mutations in each patient’s tumor to train immune cells to recognize cancer neoantigens. The companies did not release detailed efficacy data and said results will be presented at a medical meeting and shared with regulators.