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Moderna-Merck combo cuts melanoma recurrence risk 42%

By Drooid · Oct 24, 2026, 6:12 AM UTC · How we work

Summary

Moderna Vaccine Cuts Melanoma

Moderna and Merck reported that adding their mRNA vaccine to Keytruda cut melanoma recurrence risk by 42%.
The Phase 3 trial enrolled 1,137 adults, assigning 757 to vaccine plus Keytruda and 380 to Keytruda with placebo.
Two years after treatment, 82% of vaccine recipients remained cancer-free versus 70% on Keytruda alone.
The combination lowered distant metastasis or death risk by 38% compared with Keytruda alone.

Summary

Moderna Shares Plummet

Massive intraday sell-off erased about $24 billion from Moderna’s market value after the data leak.
Analysts called the move a classic “sell-the-news” reaction following months-long rally.
UBS analyst Michael Yee said a hazard ratio of 0.65 could have driven a 10-20% rise.
Merck CEO Robert Davis said the vaccine’s manufacturing timeline may be shortened to under six weeks.
ESMO confirmed an embargo breach and opened an investigation into the premature leak.

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Moderna Vaccine Cuts Melanoma

Moderna and Merck reported that adding their mRNA vaccine to Keytruda cut melanoma recurrence risk by 42%.
The Phase 3 trial enrolled 1,137 adults, assigning 757 to vaccine plus Keytruda and 380 to Keytruda with placebo.
Two years after treatment, 82% of vaccine recipients remained cancer-free versus 70% on Keytruda alone.
The combination lowered distant metastasis or death risk by 38% compared with Keytruda alone.

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