Merck said it is presenting new data about the anti-tumor activity of Keytruda on nine difficult-to-treat cancers at the European Cancer Congress (ECC) that is running through Tuesday in Vienna, Austria.
Investigation of Keytruda monotherapy in anal cancer, biliary tract cancer, colorectal cancer, Merkel cell carcinoma (a type of skin cancer), nasopharyngeal carcinoma (a type of head and neck cancer), and non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), along with a study evaluating Keytruda in combination with another immunotherapy treatment in melanoma will also be presented.
Keytruda is a humanized monoclonal antibody that blocks the interaction between PD-1 and its ligands, PD-L1 and PD-L2. By binding to the PD-1 receptor and blocking the interaction with the receptor ligands, KEYTRUDA releases the PD-1 pathway-mediated inhibition of the immune response, including the anti-tumor immune response.
“As we continue to build our growing body of clinical data expanding our understanding of the potential for Keytruda, we are also committed to identifying factors that may help us determine which patients are most likely to respond best to an individual medicine or approach,” Merck Research Laboratories Senior Vice President and Therapeutic-area Head of Oncology Late-stage Development Roger Dansey said. “The initial data we are seeing with regard to PD-L2 expression now point to the potential relevance of dual PD-L1 and PD-L2 blockade in anti-PD-1 therapy for cancer treatment.”
The Keytruda clinical development program has grown quickly and now includes more than 30 tumor types in more than 130 clinical trials.
"At Merck, we are rapidly expanding our clinical studies for Keytruda in a wide range of cancers with the goal of potentially providing cancer patients with promising new options, and helping physicians identify which approaches may be best for an individual patient,” Merck Research Laboratories Senior Vice President and Head of Global Clinical Development Roy Baynes said. “We look forward to sharing these new data at the European Cancer Congress as we continue to focus on bringing the breakthrough science of immuno-oncology to as many patients as possible.”
For more information on the ECC, go to http://www.europeancancercongress.org/Scientific-Programme/Searchable-Programme#anchorScpr.
