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MSD Partners with Dragonfly Therapeutics to Combine Keytruda with NK Cell Engager in Cancer Treatment
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Merck, Sharp & Dohme (MSD; NYSE: MRK), the producer of the leading checkpoint inhibitor Keytruda (pembrolizumab), has entered into a collaborative agreement with Dragonfly Therapeutics for the combination therapy of Keytruda and Dragonfly’s tri-specific natural killer (NK) cell engager, DF9001. The partnership aims to explore treatment options for advanced solid…
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MSD Discontinues Vibostolimab and Keytruda Combo Trial in High-Risk Melanoma
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Merck, Sharp & Dohme (MSD; NYSE: MRK) has announced its decision to cease development of the anti-TIGIT antibody vibostolimab in combination with its anti-PD-1 drug Keytruda (pembrolizumab) as an adjuvant treatment for resected high-risk melanoma. This strategic move follows an interim analysis that failed to meet the primary endpoint of…
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MSD’s Keytruda Adjuvant Treatment for High-Risk Endometrial Cancer Fails to Meet Primary Endpoint
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Merck, Sharp & Dohme (MSD; NYSE: MRK) has announced that a late-stage trial for its blockbuster drug Keytruda (pembrolizumab) as an adjuvant treatment in newly diagnosed, high-risk endometrial cancer failed to meet the primary endpoint of disease-free survival (DFS). Although the analysis of the co-primary endpoint of overall survival (OS)…
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MSD Reports USD 15.8 Billion in Q1 2024 Sales, Marked by 11% YOY Growth Excluding Forex Impact
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Merck, Sharp & Dohme (MSD; NYSE: MRK) has released its financial report for the first quarter of 2024, announcing sales of USD 15.8 billion, an increase of 11% year-on-year (YOY) excluding the impact of foreign exchange rates. The pharmaceutical division contributed USD 14.0 billion to the top line, with a…
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MSD Partners with Hanmi Pharmaceutical to Develop Combination Therapy for Solid Tumors
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Merck, Sharp & Dohme (MSD; NYSE: MRK) has announced a partnership with South Korea’s Hanmi Pharmaceutical (KRX: 128940) to develop a combination therapy using MSD’s top-selling anti-PD-1 therapy Keytruda (pembrolizumab) and Hanmi’s bispecific antibody (BsAb) BH3120 for the treatment of progressive or metastatic solid tumors. The financial details of the…
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MSD Strikes Deal with GV20 Therapeutics to Test Anti-PD-1 Combo in Solid Tumor Therapies
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Merck, Sharp & Dohme (MSD; NYSE: MRK), a global healthcare leader, has entered into a strategic collaboration with GV20 Therapeutics, a biopharmaceutical company specializing in antibody therapeutics with operations in both China and the U.S. The partnership aims to combine GV20’s groundbreaking IGSF8-targeted biologic, GV20-0251, with MSD’s best-selling anti-PD-1 therapy,…
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Merck Sharp & Dohme Acquires Abceutics for Next-Generation ADC Technology
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Global healthcare leader Merck, Sharp & Dohme (MSD) (NYSE: MRK) has secured a strategic acquisition of Abceutics, a preclinical biopharmaceutical startup focused on optimizing antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs). The financial details of the transaction remain undisclosed. Abceutics has developed a series of payload-binding selectivity enhancers (PBSEs) designed to increase the safety…
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MSD’s Winrevair Approved by FDA as First Activin Signaling Inhibitor for Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension
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The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted Merck, Sharp & Dohme (MSD; NYSE: MRK) regulatory approval for Winrevair (sotatercept), marking it as the first activin signaling inhibitor for the treatment of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) in adults. This milestone concludes a review process under the breakthrough therapy designation…
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MSD’s Phase III Trial of Keytruda Plus Lynparza Misses Primary Endpoints in NSCLC
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Merck, Sharp & Dohme (MSD; NYSE: MRK) has announced an unfavorable outcome for a Phase III trial combining Keytruda (pembrolizumab) and Lynparza (olaparib) in the first-line treatment of metastatic non-squamous non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). The study, which aimed to evaluate the efficacy of this combination therapy, was halted after…
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Merck Plans Broader HPV Vaccine Development, Targeting African and Asian Populations
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Merck, Sharp & Dohme (MSD; NYSE: MRK) has unveiled plans to develop a multi-valent human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine aimed at providing broader protection than the currently approved 9-valent Gardasil 9. This new candidate will include additional virus-like particles (VLPs) targeting HPV types that disproportionately affect populations in Africa and Asia,…
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MSD Strikes Deal with Pearl Bio to Tap into Synthetic Biology for Oncology Targets
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Merck, Sharp & Dohme (MSD; NYSE: MRK) has entered into a strategic agreement with Pearl Bio, a synthetic biology company, to leverage Pearl’s genomically recoded organisms (GROs) platform. This platform is designed for the discovery and development of biologic molecules that incorporate non-standard amino acids, enabling the targeting of previously…
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MSD Partners with IDEAYA Biosciences to Develop Combination Therapy for Endometrial Cancer
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Merck, Sharp & Dohme (MSD; NYSE: MRK) has announced a partnership with IDEAYA Biosciences (NASDAQ: IDYA), a US-based biotechnology company, to clinically develop the combination of MSD’s top-selling anti-PD-1 therapy Keytruda (pembrolizumab) with IDEAYA’s potential first-in-class poly (ADP-ribose) glycohydrolase (PARG) inhibitor IDE161. The collaboration focuses on treating microsatellite instability-high (MSI-high)…
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Gilead and MSD Report Positive Interim Data for Once-Weekly HIV Treatment in Phase II Trial
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Gilead Sciences Inc. (NASDAQ: GILD) and Merck & Co., Inc., known as MSD (NYSE: MRK), have this week unveiled preliminary findings from a Phase II clinical trial of their investigational antiretroviral combination therapy, islatravir plus lenacapavir, as a potential once-weekly oral treatment for HIV/AIDS. Despite the primary endpoint being influenced…
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Kelun-Biotech Launches Clinical Trials for SKB264, Triggering $75 Million Milestone Payment from MSD
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Sichuan Kelun-Biotech Biopharmaceutical Co., Ltd. (HKG: 6990) has announced the initiation of clinical trials for SKB264 (MK-2870), an antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) co-developed with Merck, Sharp & Dohme (MSD, NYSE: MRK) for the treatment of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and endometrial carcinoma (EC). This development triggers a clinical milestone payment…
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MSD’s Belzutifan and Sperogenix’s Vamorolone Targeted for Priority Review by China’s CDE
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The Center for Drug Evaluation (CDE) website has indicated that Merck, Sharp & Dohme’s (MSD; NYSE: MRK) belzutifan and Sperogenix Therapeutics Ltd’s vamorolone are on track to receive priority review statuses in China. Belzutifan, which targets von Hippel Lindau (VHL) disease-associated renal cell carcinoma (RCC), central nervous system (CNS) hemangioblastoma,…
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Merck’s Keytruda Under Priority Review for New Indication in Endometrial Carcinoma
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This week, the U.S. FDA granted priority review status to an indication extension filing from Merck, Sharp & Dohme (MSD; NYSE: MRK) for its blockbuster drug Keytruda (pembrolizumab), seeking approval as a treatment for primary advanced or recurrent endometrial carcinoma, the most prevalent gynecological cancer. The FDA anticipates reaching a…
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MSD’s Keytruda Secures 13th Indication Approval in China for Biliary Carcinoma Treatment
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Merck, Sharp & Dohme (MSD; NYSE: MRK), a leading US pharmaceutical company, has announced that its drug Keytruda (pembrolizumab) has received approval from the National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) in China for a new indication. The drug is now approved as a first-line treatment for locally advanced or metastatic biliary…
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Merck Q4 Sales Grow 6% YOY, Driven by Pharmaceutical Segment and HPV Vaccine Demand
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Merck, Sharp & Dohme (MSD; NYSE: MRK), a leading US pharmaceutical company, has released its financial report for the fourth quarter and full year of 2023. In Q4, MSD generated USD 14.6 billion in sales, marking a 6% year-on-year increase, with growth expanding to 13% when excluding the impacts from…
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MSD Partners with Variational AI to Harness Generative AI for Drug Discovery
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Merck, Sharp & Dohme (MSD; NYSE: MRK) has embarked on a collaborative project with Canadian company Variational AI to leverage the latter’s generative AI-powered model for drug discovery initiatives. Through this partnership, MSD will have early access to Variational AI’s platform, which utilizes text prompts to generate novel small molecules…
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BJ Bioscience Inc. Faces Bankruptcy as Hangzhou Court Accepts Liquidation Application
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The Hangzhou Yuhang District People’s Court has released a document indicating that BJ Bioscience Inc.’s application for bankruptcy liquidation has been accepted for review. The Hangzhou-based firm becomes the first domestic biotech company to face insolvency this year. Established in 2018, BJ Bio focused on research and development (R&D) of…
