Merck has been making a lot of headlines during the past year amidst the pandemic. Now, the firm is in the spotlight again, and this time, it’s about another kind of therapy. Check out the latest reports below.
Merck antiviral therapy is a success
It’s been revealed by official data that the firm highlighted findings from a Phase 3 trial of Prevymis (letermovir) compared to valganciclovir for cytomegalovirus (CMV) prophylaxis in high-risk kidney transplant recipients.
“At 52 weeks following the kidney transplant, Prevymis was effective and non-inferior to valganciclovir for preventing CMV disease (10.4% vs. 11.8%),” official notes reveal.
It’s also been reported the fact that in a pre-specified safety analysis, Prevymis-treated participants had significantly less myelotoxicity, as measured by rates of leukopenia or neutropenia, compared to valganciclovir-treated participants (26.0% vs. 64.0%).
Accoridng to the official notes fro the report, it’s been revealed the following:
“The FDA approved Prevymis in 2017 for prophylaxis of CMV infection and disease in adult CMV-seropositive recipients [R+] of an allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT).”
More than that, it seems that Merck is planning to present these data at a scientific congress. It’s also worth noting the fact that the firm will submit a supplemental marketing application with these data to the FDA by the end of this year.
Merck in the news – New cancer vaccine on the way?
CNBC just noted that Moderna and Merck would jointly develop and sell a cancer vaccine that is personalized for individual patients.
“Moderna’s vaccine, based on its messenger RNA technology, is being studied in combination with Merck’s Keytruda to treat patients with high-risk melanoma, the deadliest form of skin cancer, in a phase 2 trial. The companies expect to report data in the fourth quarter of this year,” according to CNBC.
Moderna’s stock jumped 16% in morning trading following the news, and this is great for the company.
As you probably know by now, the firm has been making a lot of headlines due to the covid vaccine that it developed.
