Moderna Shares Fall as Cancer Vaccine Data Leaks Ahead of Full Presentation
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Moderna shares dropped as much as 25% on Thursday following the leak of partial data on its closely watched cancer vaccine developed with Merck, CNBC reported. Shares of both drugmakers fell even though the data, released in full later Thursday following the leak, appeared meaningful for patients and positive relative to Wall Street expectations, CNBC said; the Wall Street Journal also reported that early leakage of the cancer vaccine data sent shares plummeting.
The personalised vaccine, known as intismeran autogene, paired with Merck’s immunotherapy Keytruda, reduced the risk of recurrence or death in certain melanoma patients by 42% compared with Keytruda alone, CNBC reported. The combination also reduced the risk of the cancer spreading to distant parts of the body or death by 38% compared with the immunotherapy alone, CNBC said. About 82% of patients who received the personalised vaccine alongside Keytruda were alive without their melanoma returning two years after the shot, compared with 70% of those who received Keytruda alone, according to the companies as cited by CNBC. A separate analysis showed the benefit appeared even larger after the six-month vaccine regimen, with a 58% reduction in the risk of recurrence or death, CNBC reported.
“This is a huge development for our patients,” said Dr. Hussein Tawbi, a melanoma expert and trial investigator at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, as quoted by CNBC. Tawbi said the added benefit of the vaccine comes with much milder toxicity compared with other cancer treatments, CNBC reported. “Whenever you put a therapy on top of something that works really well, like Keytruda, sometimes it’s harder to show additional benefit. We have no problems of showing additional benefit here,” said Dr. Dean Li, president of Merck Research Laboratories, as quoted by CNBC. The detailed phase 3 trial results were set to be presented at the European Society for Medical Oncology conference this weekend, CNBC said.
IBTimes reported the treatment is a personalised therapy built around the unique mutational “fingerprint” of a patient’s own tumour. Professor Georgina Long, the study’s principal investigator and medical director of Melanoma Institute Australia, called it a “landmark moment” for adjuvant melanoma treatment and the first phase 3 study showing such a personalised mRNA treatment can reduce recurrence or death, IBTimes reported. The company’s chief executive Bancel described the findings as a “pivotal moment” in cancer research, saying the idea of an mRNA treatment designed for an individual patient’s cancer “was aspirational” and “we are now helping turn that vision into a reality,” IBTimes reported.
Despite Thursday’s decline, Moderna has jumped more than 500% since the beginning of the year, largely on expectations for the vaccine, IBTimes reported. “We assert this relative reduction in recurrence/death is clinically meaningful,” BMO Capital Markets analyst Evan Seigerman said in a research note after the leak, adding that the stock reaction “likely reflects inflated expectations into the full data release, rather than a true indictment on the efficacy of the combo therapy,” as quoted by CNBC. The companies said it is still too early to determine whether the treatment helps patients live longer overall, CNBC reported.