Merck's lung cancer drug combo fails to meet trial goal

[December 07, 2023]  (Reuters) -Merck said on Thursday its experimental therapy in combination with Keytruda to treat a type of lung cancer in previously treated patients did not meet the main goal in a mid-stage study.

Merck's experimental drug, vibostolimab, in combination with its blockbuster drug Keytruda, failed to meaningfully slow disease progression and improve overall survival in patients with metastatic non-small-cell lung cancer.

Vibostolimab belongs to an emerging class of so-called anti-TIGIT therapies that have triggered a flurry of research and deal activity.

Gilead Sciences, Roche and GSK are among the drugmakers looking to grab a share of the lucrative cancer market focused on a protein believed to help cancer cells thwart immune system detection.

Merck's setback marks the second major blow to more than half a dozen companies exploring anti-TIGIT treatments, after Roche's therapy failed to slow progression of a type of lung cancer in a second trial last year.

(Reporting by Khushi Mandowara in Bengaluru; Editing by Devika Syamnath)

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