Merck to Present Scientific Data Across More Than 20 Cancer Types at 2021 ASCO Annual Meeting

KENILWORTH, N.J., May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Merck (known as MSD outside the United States and Canada), headquartered in Kenilworth, New Jersey, announced that it will present data from more than 20 cancer types across its oncology research program at the 2021 American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting, being held June 4–8. The presentations will involve Merck’s PD-1 inhibitor pembrolizumab and lenvatinib, developed in collaboration with Eisai Co., Ltd.^[3], olaparib in collaboration with AstraZeneca, and the investigational oral hypoxia-inducible factor-2α (HIF-2α) inhibitor belzutifan^[4]。

“We have designed and launched an extensive oncology clinical development program to help us fully unlock the therapeutic potential of our marketed and investigational oncology products, identify novel treatment pathways, and explore earlier-stage interventions and combination therapies with other treatment regimens,” said Dr. Roy Baynes, Senior Vice President of Global Clinical Research and Chief Medical Officer at MSD Laboratories. “The new clinical study data and real-world evidence presented by MSD at this year’s ASCO will demonstrate the meaningful impact of our anti-tumor medicines on cancer patients and continue to drive innovative exploration in oncology treatment.”

Key abstracts to be presented at the ASCO meeting include:

Pembrolizumab^[1]

Olaparib^[2]

Pembrolizumab^[1]Combined with Lenvatinib^[3]

Investigational Drug^[4]

[1] As of now, the National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) has approved the following indications for pembrolizumab; other indications have not yet been approved:
· Indicated for the treatment of unresectable or metastatic melanoma after failure of first-line therapy;
· Combination therapy with pemetrexed and platinum-based chemotherapy is indicated for the first-line treatment of metastatic non-squamous non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) that is negative for epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) gene mutations and anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK).
· Indicated for first-line monotherapy in patients with locally advanced or metastatic non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) who are EGFR mutation-negative and ALK-negative, and whose tumors express PD-L1 with a Tumor Proportion Score (TPS) ≥1%, as determined by a test approved by the National Medical Products Administration (NMPA);
· The combination of carboplatin and paclitaxel is indicated for first-line treatment in patients with metastatic squamous non-small cell lung cancer;
· As monotherapy for the treatment of patients with locally advanced or metastatic esophageal squamous cell carcinoma who have failed prior first-line systemic therapy and whose tumors express PD-L1 (Combined Positive Score [CPS] ≥ 10), as assessed by a fully validated assay;
· As monotherapy for the first-line treatment of patients with metastatic or unresectable recurrent head and neck squamous cell carcinoma whose tumors express PD-L1 (CPS ≥20), as determined by a fully validated test.

[2] As of now, the NMPA has approved the following indications for olaparib; other indications have not yet been approved:
· For maintenance treatment of adult patients with platinum-sensitive recurrent epithelial ovarian cancer, fallopian tube cancer, or primary peritoneal cancer who have achieved complete or partial response after platinum-based chemotherapy
· Maintenance treatment for adult patients with previously untreated advanced epithelial ovarian cancer, fallopian tube cancer, or primary peritoneal cancer who carry germline or somatic BRCA mutations (gBRCAm or sBRCAm) and have achieved complete or partial response after first-line platinum-based chemotherapy

[3] As of now, the NMPA has approved the following indications for lenvatinib; other indications have not yet been approved:
· For the treatment of patients with unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma who have not previously received systemic therapy
· For patients with progressive, locally advanced or metastatic radioactive iodine-refractory differentiated thyroid cancer

[4] As of now, belzutifan has not yet been approved by the NMPA.