Moderna Therapeutics, Merck deal

The companies partnered to develop and commercialize mRNA-based cancer vaccines that encode patient-specific neoantigens. Merck will pay Moderna $200 million up front, which Moderna will use for R&D through proof of concept (POC). Beginning next year, Merck and Moderna plan to start clinical studies of the personalized vaccines in several cancer types, including combinations with Merck’s Keytruda pembrolizumab. Keytruda, PD-1 inhibitor, is approved in the U.S. to treat non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and melanoma. ...