NEW DELHI: A personalised cancer vaccine has shown encouraging results in a large Phase-3 trial of patients with high-risk melanoma – a potentially aggressive form of skin cancer – helping keep the cancer from returning or spreading when given along with Merck’s immunotherapy Keytruda, pharma major Moderna said in a statement. Keytruda helps the body’s immune system recognise and attack cancer cells.The INTerpath-001 trial involved 1,137 patients with high-risk melanoma whose tumours had been completely removed through surgery. They received either personalised mRNA treatment, intismeran autogene, along with Keytruda, or Keytruda alone. The combination met the trial’s main goal of improving the time patients remained free of cancer returning and also met a key secondary goal of reducing the risk of the cancer spreading to distant parts of the body.Moderna shares hit a two-year high of $140.19 Wednesday and were on track to add about $30 billion to the company’s market value after promising late-stage data on its personalised mRNA cancer therapy, developed with Merck, sent investors piling into the stock.

According to Merck and Moderna, the INTerpath-001 trial met its primary goal of improving recurrence-free survival and a key secondary goal of improving distant metastasis-free survival.Unlike preventive vaccines, this is a therapeutic cancer vaccine designed for people who already have cancer. Dr Mandeep Singh Malhotra, oncologist at Art of Healing Cancer, said the development was an important advance in personalised cancer treatment. But affordability and access would be major challenges in India.