KRAS analysis vaults Merck's flagship Keytruda back into the spotlight
The jewel in Merck’s crown — Keytruda — just got more precious.
On Thursday, the US drugmaker broke out an exploratory analysis showing the checkpoint inhibitor helped patients live longer as the first line of defense in patients with a form of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) whose tumors expressed PD-L1, regardless of KRAS status.
KRAS mutations occur in roughly a fifth of patients diagnosed with non-small cell lung cancer, and data suggest that these mutations are associated with poor response to treatment, noted Jonathan Cheng, vice president of oncology clinical research at Merck Research Laboratories, in a statement.
Unlock this article instantly by becoming a free subscriber.
You’ll get access to free articles each month, plus you can customize what newsletters get delivered to your inbox each week, including breaking news.