Frozen copy retrieved 2026-08-20T19:10:00Z for audit 2026-08-20T21-09-12Z. Original URL: https://www.ksl.com/article/51611612/moderna-merck-vaccine-cuts-recurrence-and-spread-of-melanoma-raising-new-treatment-hope. The Stochastic Parrot does not host or redistribute; this snapshot exists solely so that quoted spans remain verifiable if the original page changes. Character offsets below index into this plain text; highlighted spans are the quotes cited in the audit.

Moderna, Merck vaccine cuts recurrence and spread of melanoma, raising new treatment hope

Reuters (wire; captured via KSL.com syndication — reuters.com blocks direct fetch) · back to the audit
Byline: Michael Erman and Julie Steenhuysen, Reuters; posted Aug. 19, 2026 on KSL.com. Full lead sentence NOT captured verbatim as one contiguous string (fetch tool capped quotes at 125 chars). Confirmed verbatim fragments in order: "a personalized mRNA cancer vaccine reduced the risk of recurrence and spread of melanoma" ... "a major success in a new field of cancer treatment" ... "sent Moderna's shares surging as much as 160%".

VERBATIM spans:
- "They do not yet have results on overall survival" — described as a secondary endpoint that "measures whether patients who receive a treatment live longer than those who do not."
- "The companies did not provide detailed results, which they said they would share at an upcoming medical meeting."
- Moderna president Stephen Hoge: "This is the first time that we've seen really clinically significant, statistically significant improvements over checkpoints like Keytruda in this population, and it is the first time we've done that with an individualized treatment."
- "In January, the companies announced results of a mid-stage trial of the treatment showing that it reduced the risk of recurrence or death by 49% after five years."
- Moderna has "faced pushback over its mRNA technology from President Donald Trump's administration"; HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. "has criticized the safety and efficacy of mRNA vaccines" and "cut $500 million in mRNA vaccine projects."
- Bancel on pricing, on CNBC: "the data had only become available a couple of days ago."
- "adding nearly $40 billion to the company's market capitalization"; "Merck climbed 12%"; "The Nasdaq Biotechnology Index climbed 5.2% to a record high."
- "The trial enrolled 1,137 high-risk patients with stage IIB-IV melanoma that had been surgically removed," randomized to "up to nine doses of Keytruda plus the personalized vaccine or Keytruda alone for about one year." "The companies said no new safety signals have emerged in the trial."
- Hoge: given "the vaccine's breakthrough therapy designation, it could be available as soon as next year." He called the result "a landmark."
- Karen Knudsen (Parker Institute): "The positive hit here leads us into truly this next phase in immunotherapy" / "This is an auspicious start — this is where things begin."
- "Melanoma is the deadliest form of skin cancer." / "In 2023, there were more than 1.5 million people in the U.S. living with melanoma according to the National Cancer Institute."
- "The companies said they will present their results at an upcoming medical meeting and share them with regulators."

NOT VERBATIM (fetch returned processed summary only; for span-locating, do NOT quote): Moderna shares "surged as much as 160%, adding roughly $40 billion in market value"; breakthrough therapy designation; availability as soon as next year if regulators approve; first positive late-stage result for an mRNA cancer vaccine; Barclays analysts projected roughly $3 billion in annual melanoma sales by 2035; J.P. Morgan said the launch could be key to Moderna's return to profitability.