Moderna-Merck Cancer Vaccine Cuts Melanoma Recurrence Risk — SkimNews
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- Moderna and Merck revealed that a 1,137-volunteer study showed their cancer vaccine intismeran autogene reduced the odds that surgically removed melanoma would return or spread.
- At a March 2023 off-site leadership meeting, CEO Stéphane Bancel asked roughly 100 executives to stand if they expected the mid-stage trial to succeed — none did, including president Stephen Hoge on stage.
- Investors were betting against Moderna's stock before the announcement, and longtime skeptics of mRNA technology continue urging researchers to wait for fuller data.
- Intismeran autogene has long been described as "the breakthrough no one quite believed in," reflecting persistent doubts about Moderna's mRNA cancer treatment platform.
- Top-line results from large pharmaceutical firms are rarely reversed when full data emerge, a historical pattern that cuts against the remaining skepticism following last Wednesday's announcement.
Why it matters: For Moderna's mRNA platform, this 1,137-patient melanoma trial is the first large-scale validation of its cancer vaccine — contradicting the skepticism that had investors betting against the stock and even left CEO Bancel doubting until March 2023.
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