Merck's Blockbuster Cancer Antibody Racks Up Another Approval

Merck’s blockbuster checkpoint inhibitor Keytruda (pembrolizumab) racked up yet another approval. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved Keytruda combined with Genentech’s Herceptin (trastuzumab), fluoropyrimidine- and platinum-containing chemotherapy, for first-line treatment of locally advanced unresectable or metastatic HER2-positive gastric or gastroesophageal junction (GEJ) adenocarcinoma. It was approved under an accelerated approval pathway based on tumor response rate and durability of response.