Moderna-Merck Personalized mRNA Vaccine Shows Promise in Melanoma Trial

The vaccine, called Intismeran, was tested in combination with Merck's widely used immunotherapy drug Keytruda in patients who had surgery to remove high-risk melanoma tumors. According to interim results released on Wednesday, the treatment met both its primary goal of reducing cancer recurrence and its secondary goal of preventing tumors from spreading to other parts of the body, compared with Keytruda alone.

Moderna President Stephen Hoge said in an interview that thousands of patients could benefit as soon as next year if regulators approve the vaccine. Merck said the companies are already in talks with regulators about the treatment.

The vaccine works by training a patient's immune system to fight tumors by targeting specific mutations in cancer cells. When injected into a patient, the patient's cells produce copies of mutations for the immune system to recognize and destroy.

Experts responded positively to the results. Karen Knudsen, CEO of the Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy, said the findings could signal a new era for treating solid-tumor cancers. Dr. Julie Gralow, chief medical officer of the American Society of Clinical Oncology, called the trial result "a monumental leap forward," validating mRNA technology as a cancer treatment.

Other companies are pursuing similar approaches. Roche and BioNTech, whose mRNA technology was used in Pfizer's COVID vaccines, are testing a similar treatment called autogene cevumeran in mid-stage studies for colon and pancreatic cancer patients who have undergone surgery. Results from the colon cancer trial are expected in 2027, with pancreatic trial results to follow in 2031. Dr. Robert Vonderheide, director of Penn Medicine's Abramson Cancer Center and president-elect of the American Association for Cancer Research, said that multiple studies will report results over the next few years and there is every reason to hope that many will be positive.