An experimental melanoma vaccine has shown positive results in its first late-stage clinical trial. And so the title Modern, who developed it together with Merck, takes flight on Wall Street. Less than an hour after the opening of the US stock exchange, the shares of the pharmaceutical giant double their value and mark +116% to 136,34 dollars. The title is also tonic Merck which rises by 10,9% and, in its wake, the entire pharmaceutical sector runs: Eli Lilly + 4,72% Pfizer + 3,6% Gilead + 3,7% AbbVie + 2,3% Johnson & Johnson +1,6%. Contagion effect also in Europe: in London Astrazeneca advances by 2,76% in Zurich Novartis rises by 1,48%.
Moderna and the experimental vaccine against melanoma
According to a statement from Moderna and Merck to CNBC, the mRNA vaccine—the same technology used for COVID-19 vaccines—administered in combination with Merck's immunotherapy Keytruda, achieved key endpoints in a Phase 3 study conducted on over 1.100 patients with high-risk or advanced melanoma who had undergone surgery to completely remove the tumor. The therapy also reduced the risk of the tumor spreading to other parts of the body. These results confirm and complement the positive data from a Phase 2 study conducted on the same treatment regimen earlier this year.
During the pandemic, Moderna, along with Pfizer and AstraZeneca, had become a key player in the development of anti-Covid vaccines, but its stock price then fell sharply due to the decline in demand for the coronavirus vaccine.
