Moderna shares soar after study shows cancer vaccine slows melanoma recurrence

When the New York Stock Exchange closed, shares of the US pharmaceutical company Moderna had risen 177 percent during the day.

The company, together with industry peer Merck, has developed a vaccine based on mRNA therapy. A study now shows that the vaccine slows the recurrence of malignant melanoma, the most aggressive form of skin cancer.

Merck shares also rose significantly, up 12.6 percent.

However, the study results do not indicate exactly how effective the vaccine is, that is, how long patients live without the cancer coming back.