Moderna and Merck Present Positive Three-Year Data on Experimental Skin Cancer Vaccine

Moderna and Merck Report Positive Results on Experimental Cancer Vaccine

Moderna and Merck have revealed more positive three-year data on their experimental vaccine for the treatment of a deadly form of skin cancer. The vaccine, used in combination with Merck's Keytruda therapy, has shown improved survival rates and long-lasting efficacy in a midstage study involving patients with this aggressive form of skin cancer. The data was presented at the American Society of Clinical Oncology annual meeting in Chicago.

Encouraging Statistics

The new data highlights that nearly 75% of patients who received the combination treatment were alive without any signs or symptoms of their cancer returning at the 2½-year mark, compared to 55.6% of patients who received Keytruda alone. Moreover, the overall survival rate of patients who took the vaccine in combination with Keytruda was 96% after 2½ years, compared to 90.2% among those who took Keytruda alone.

The study also revealed that the combination reduced the risk of melanoma spreading to other parts of the body or death by 62%. These results are a significant advancement in the treatment of this deadly form of skin cancer.

Potential for a Broad Range of Patients

The data reflects the potential for the vaccine to help treat a broad range of melanoma patients, regardless of certain tumor characteristics. This is an exciting development in the field of oncology and offers hope for patients with this aggressive form of cancer.

Side Effects and Technology

The most common side effects associated with the vaccine were fatigue, injection site pain, and chills, with the majority being mild. However, patients who received the combination had slightly higher immune-related side effects.

The vaccine, which uses the same mRNA technology as Moderna's Covid vaccine, is custom-built based on an analysis of a patient's tumors after surgical removal. It is designed to train the immune system to recognize and attack specific mutations in cancer cells. Moderna is working to reduce the time between the initial analysis of a tumor and when a patient receives the vaccine.

Regulatory and Clinical Progress

Merck's Keytruda has already been approved to treat melanoma and other cancers, and it belongs to a class of widely used immunotherapies designed to disable a certain protein that helps cancer evade the immune system. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration granted breakthrough therapy designation to the cancer vaccine for the treatment of melanoma in February, aiming to expedite the development and review of treatments for serious and life-threatening diseases.

Both Moderna and Merck plan to file for accelerated approval with the FDA, which would allow for expedited approvals of drugs for serious conditions that fill an unmet medical need. This regulatory progress is a significant step forward in bringing this promising treatment to patients.

Future Trials and Potential Expansion

Moderna and Merck are actively studying the combination as a treatment for late-stage melanoma in a phase-three trial, which began in July. Additionally, they are conducting another phase three trial of the vaccine in patients with a type of lung cancer. Several other trials are also underway, including a two-part mid- to late-stage trial on the vaccine and Keytruda in patients at an advanced stage of a common skin cancer, a phase two trial in certain patients with a type of kidney cancer, and another study on people with a type of bladder cancer.

Impact of Melanoma

Melanoma is responsible for the large majority of skin cancer deaths, and its incidence has rapidly increased over the past few decades. In the U.S. alone, about 100,000 people will be diagnosed with melanoma this year, with nearly 8,000 expected to die from the disease, according to the American Cancer Society.

The progress made by Moderna and Merck in the development of this experimental cancer vaccine offers hope to patients and represents a significant advancement in the fight against this deadly form of skin cancer.