Very promising are the results of two studies on the first-line treatment of advanced lung cancer because of Keytruda (pembrolizumab), Merck's anti-PD-1 therapy, presented on Oct. 9 at the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) 2016 Congress in Copenhagen, Denmark.
The first study compared Keytruda as monotherapy to chemotherapy in patients whose tumors express high levels of PD-L1 (tumor proportion score of 50% or more). The study involved 305 patients and showed a significant overall survival of patients treated with Keytruda: “at six months, 62.1% of patients treated with Keytruda were alive and had no disease progression (95% CI, 53.8-69.4) compared to 50.3% of those receiving chemotherapy (95% CI, 41.9-58.2).” (Merck’s NR).
The second study examined Keytruda plus chemotherapy (carboplatin and pemetrexed) compared to chemotherapy alone in all patients with non-squamous non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). The study involved 123 patients and the results “show that pembrolizumab plus chemotherapy nearly doubled the number of patients responding to treatment than chemotherapy alone," Dr. Corey Langer, director of thoracic oncology and professor of medicine at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania and lead author of "The Lancet Oncology"Â paper, said. (Merck’s NR).
It represents a huge step forward concerning targeted therapies against lung cancer, a type of cancer that sees North America having the highest rate in terms of both incidence and mortality, along with Europe and East Asia.
The new treatment of immunotherapy will post huge advantages for patients because they are being selected according to the PD-L1 expression on tumor cells, receive a more effective treatment and avoid chemotherapy and traditional treatments.
Merck ‘s Keytruda was approved by the Food and Drug Admistration on an "accelerated" basis to treat lung cancer. In 2015, its sales were $566 million, a 929% increase year-over-year due to higher volumes in the U.S. Volumes were high as well in the emerging markets and Europe, as the company continues to launch the medication.
Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK, Financial) is a member of the S&P 500 Dividend Aristocrats Index and pays a quarterly dividend of 46 cents per share. The dividend yield is 2.93%.
At the moment, Merck is trading around $63.97 per share on the New York Stock Exchange and outperformed with 15.43% the Standard & Poor's 500 and it is up trending.
The company has a market capitalization of $62.54 billion. As of the second quarter, cash and short-term investments amounted to $11.8 billion and total long-term debt amounted to $23.6 billion. Cash flow from operating activities was about $12.4 billion in 2015, a 57% increase from the previous fiscal year.
Disclosure: I have no positions in Merck & Co. Inc.
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