Merck (MRK) and Moderna (MRNA) said Wednesday that a late-stage trial of intismeran autogene in combination with Keytruda met its primary endpoint of recurrence-free survival as well as a key secondary endpoint of distant metastasis-free survival in patients with completely resected stage IIB-IV melanoma.

The combination demonstrated statistically significant and clinically meaningful improvements in both recurrence-free survival and distant metastasis-free survival compared with Keytruda alone, the companies said.

The trial will continue to evaluate other secondary endpoints, such as overall survival, the companies said.

Safety profiles of intismeran and Keytruda were consistent with previously reported results, with no new safety signals, the companies said.

Merck shares were 6% higher and Moderna shares rose 55% in recent Wednesday premarket activity.