The Era of mRNA Cancer Vaccines Opens with Moderna... Here Are the Domestic Beneficiary Stocks [Weekend Money]

IBK Investment & Securities Anticipates Benefits for Alteogen and ST Pharm

Moderna and Merck Headquarters. (AFP=Yonhap News)

Interest in domestic beneficiary stocks has grown following news that the mRNA-based cancer vaccine, jointly developed by Moderna and Merck (MSD), has achieved its primary goal of inhibiting cancer recurrence and metastasis in a late-stage (Phase 3) clinical trial for high-risk melanoma patients.

According to related industry sources on the 22nd, Moderna announced on the 19th (local time) that its personalized mRNA cancer vaccine, Intismeran Autogene, developed jointly with MSD, yielded positive results in a Phase 3 clinical trial involving melanoma patients who had undergone surgery. The combination therapy of Intismeran and MSD’s immune checkpoint inhibitor Keytruda met both the primary endpoint of recurrence-free survival (RFS) and the key secondary endpoint of distant metastasis-free survival (DMFS).

According to IBK Investment & Securities and others, this outcome marks the first time that a personalized mRNA-based neoantigen therapy has succeeded in a Phase 3 clinical trial. On the day of the announcement, Moderna’s stock price soared by 177%, reflecting the market’s expectations, while the detailed data is scheduled to be released at an upcoming scientific meeting.

IBK Investment & Securities evaluated the success of this Phase 3 trial as a major inflection point that could fundamentally change Moderna’s business. Adjuvant therapy to prevent cancer recurrence after surgery does not have seasonality, is administered over a long period, and can be widely applied to patients at risk of recurrence, making its demand characteristics fundamentally different from that of infectious disease vaccines.

Intismeran is currently undergoing Phase 2 and 3 clinical trials not only for melanoma but also for various other cancers such as non-small cell lung cancer, bladder cancer, head and neck cancer, and renal cell carcinoma. Therefore, industry analysts point out that the significance of this success extends beyond a single indication, as it is the first time in Phase 3 that Moderna’s personalized mRNA cancer platform has been clinically proven to be effective.

IBK Investment & Securities singled out Alteogen as the domestic company most likely to benefit directly. Lee Soo Jung, a researcher at IBK Investment & Securities, explained, “Since the combination drug for Intismeran is Keytruda, the expansion of the adjuvant therapy market, along with the expansion of Keytruda’s therapeutic indications, is highly likely to lead to an increase in prescriptions for Keytruda Qurex, the subcutaneous injection formulation utilizing Alteogen’s platform technology.”

He further noted, “It is especially noteworthy that MSD has already begun a Phase 3 trial of the combination of Keytruda Qurex and Intismeran for high-risk stage I non-small cell lung cancer, supporting the possibility that the mRNA cancer vaccine combination therapy may increasingly focus on subcutaneous injection forms in the future.”

ST Pharm is also seen as having beneficiary potential. Researcher Lee predicted, “As global latecomers begin developing mRNA cancer vaccines in earnest, the CDMO demand for early clinical quantities is expected to rise.” He also said, “Although development is still in the early stages, market interest in domestic companies with mRNA delivery and platform technologies—such as Samyang Biopharm and Hanmi Pharm—is also likely to grow.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.