Merck (NYSE:MRK) has 32 drugs in its late-stage pipeline, eight it is filing in the next two years, as the pharmaceutical company focuses on building a new generation of blockbuster drugs.
Ken Frazier, Merck’s CEO, said at an R&D and investor briefing that he is aiming to keep revenue at 2011 levels even though its $5 billion asthma treatment drug Singulair is expected to go generic next year, cutting into sales.
“We are not talking about a trough here,” he said.
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The Whitehouse Station, New Jersey drugmaker has 19 candidates in phase 3 clinical trials targeting a broad range of diseases.
It is filing new drug applications in 2012 and 2013 for drugs treating osteoporosis, chronic insomnia and atherosclerosis, a new cervical cancer vaccine designed to improve its existing Gardasil drug against HPV.
Among the 32 phase 2 and phase 3 candidates in its late-stage pipeline are two cancer candidates, MK-1775 and MK-2206, that have moved into phase 2 trials. A treatment of C. difficile infection and an investigational combination of sitagliptin and atorvastatin for the treatment of type 2 diabetes and atherosclerosis have started phase 3 studies.
Merck has had five drugs approved to date this year, among them a hepatitis C drug Victrelis, a three- year birth control implant for women called Nexplanon and a combination pill for people with both diabetes and high cholesterol, Juvisync.