Merck Immunotherapy Drug Notches Another FDA Win in Lung Cancer according to : Xconomy

Merck Immunotherapy addiction Notches Another FDA Win in Lung CancerXconomy New York —The FDA has approved use of a Merck drug in combination with chemotherapy as a first-line treatment for the most common type of Lung Cancer. Last year, the FDA approved it for lung cancer patients whose tumors produce a high amount of the protein PD-L1, which covered only a fraction of the total cases of lung cancer. The Merck drug, a so-called checkpoint inhibitor, blocks the signals that some cancers use to evade attack by the immune system. There are more than 200,000 new cases of lung cancer each year in the U.S., and it is the leading cause of cancer death, according to the American Cancer Society. The FDA approval for (NYSE: MRK) pembrozlizumab (Keytruda) to treat metastatic nonsquamous non-small cell lung cancer widens the use of the immunotherapy.




The specific type of lung cancer that Keytruda plus chemo is now approved to treat—non-squamous non small cell lung cancer (NSCLC)—makes up about three in four of the more than 222,000 new annual lung cancer cases in America. For one, lung cancer is the second most commonly diagnosed cancer in America (behind breast cancer) and by far the deadliest one, killing nearly 156,000 U.S. residents every year. But the lung cancer market is key—and there, at least, Keytruda has thrown down the gauntlet. On Wednesday, the Food and addiction Administration (FDA) approved the U.S. drug giant's superstar cancer immunotherapy Keytruda, in combination with chemotherapy, as a go-to treatment option for Americans with advanced lung cancer who haven't received any previous medicines. Opdivo once seemed like it was fated to become the next-gen cancer drug king, easily lapping Keytruda in sales .

FDA Approves Merck's KEYTRUDA® (pembrolizumab) as First-Line Combination Therapy with Pemetrexed and Carboplatin for Patients with Metastatic Nonsquamous Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer (NSCLC), Irrespecti

When administering KEYTRUDA in combination with pem/carbo, KEYTRUDA should be administered first prior to chemotherapy when given on the same day. Nephritis occurred in 9 (0.3%) of 2799 patients receiving KEYTRUDA, including Grade 2 (0.1%), 3 (0.1%), and 4 (<0.1%) nephritis. Hepatitis occurred in 19 (0.7%) of 2799 patients receiving KEYTRUDA, including Grade 2 (0.1%), 3 (0.4%), and 4 (<0.1%) hepatitis. Colitis occurred in 48 (1.7%) of 2799 patients receiving KEYTRUDA, including Grade 2 (0.4%), 3 (1.1%), and 4 (<0.1%) colitis. Hypophysitis occurred in 17 (0.6%) of 2799 patients receiving KEYTRUDA, including Grade 2 (0.2%), 3 (0.3%), and 4 (<0.1%) hypophysitis.


collected by :Lucy William

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