02:01 PM EDT, 06/18/2025 (MT Newswires) -- Health care stocks were mixed Wednesday afternoon, with the NYSE Health Care Index shedding 0.2% and the Health Care Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLV) adding 0.3%.

The iShares Biotechnology ETF (IBB) rose 0.9%.

In sector news, US Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is weighing a proposal for a key government vaccine advisory panel to scrutinize vaccines with aluminum ingredients, Bloomberg reported Wednesday. A review could impact at least two dozen vaccines, the report said.

In corporate news, Caris Life Sciences (CAI) shares surged 27% in their debut Wednesday on Nasdaq following the company's IPO of 23.5 million shares priced at $21 each.

Grail (GRAL) shares jumped 12% after it said Wednesday that it has seen better cancer detection results from an analysis of the first 25,578 participants in its Pathfinder 2 study compared with the previous Pathfinder study.

Maia Biotechnology ( MAIA ) shares popped nearly 14% after the company said it has signed a clinical master supply agreement with Roche.

Prenetics (PRE) shares were rising nearly 13% after the company said it completed the sale of ACT Genomics to Delta Electronics in a deal valued at up to $71.8 million.