The pharmaceutical companies Moderna and Merck have experienced strong stock market rises, of 75% and 8%, respectively, after announcing favorable preliminary results in a clinical trial of a vaccine against melanoma. The study has shown a reduction in the recurrence of this type of skin cancer —that is, a delay in its reappearance— and a greater delay in the appearance of metastases.
After these data were released, shares of the American biotechnology laboratory Moderna surged in pre-market trading before the opening of the New York Stock Exchange, approaching a gain of 75%. Thus, the price per share reached 110 dollars, compared to the 62.96 dollars recorded at the close of the previous session.
In the case of the German Merck, the market reaction was more contained, although still significant: its shares rose around 8% on Wall Street, reaching 145 dollars per share, above the 135.17 dollars with which it ended the previous day.
Both companies have combined an RNA-based therapy with a drug already marketed by Merck, Keytruda, to develop this new therapeutic strategy. The trials have represented the first positive phase 3 result for both an individualized neoantigen therapy and an oncology treatment based on mRNA.
According to the companies, the results showed "statistically significant and clinically relevant improvements" in recurrence-free survival and distant metastasis-free survival in patients with this type of melanoma.
The firms expect to present the complete data at an upcoming international medical meeting and subsequently submit them to the competent regulatory authorities for evaluation.
"These phase 3 results represent a crucial moment for cancer research. For many years, the idea of creating an mRNA treatment specifically designed for each patient's cancer was an aspiration. Now we are helping to turn that vision into reality," highlighted Moderna's CEO, Stéphane Bancel.
"By intervening at an early stage of the disease, when many cancers are considered more treatable, the goal of the adjuvant therapy administered after surgery is to increase the possibility of cure for a greater number of patients," stated the president of Merck Research Laboratories, Dean Y Li.