NGM Biosciences’ experimental geographic atrophy therapy failed a mid-stage test, making it less likely that drug partner Merck will exercise its option on the antibody. Meanwhile, an Apellis Pharmaceuticals drug for the same disorder is expected to receive an FDA decision by late November.
Moderna and Merck have been partners in the development of messenger RNA cancer vaccines since 2016. Merck is deepening the alliance by exercising an option that enables it to share equally in further work on a partnered cancer vaccine for melanoma.
Munck Wilson Mandala Partner Greg Howison shared his perspective on some of the legal ramifications around AI, IP, connected devices and the data they generate, in response to emailed questions.
A Merck HIV drug placed under multiple full and partial clinical holds last year is now clear to resume testing. As part of a modified plan, Merck will test a lower dose of its experimental drug, islatravir. The pharma giant is also dropping tests of the drug for HIV prevention.
Merck aims to bolster its genetic medicines pipeline through a new research alliance with Orna Therapeutics, a startup whose technology forms RNA into a circle shape that brings several advantages for new therapies and vaccines. In addition to starting the partnership, the pharmaceutical giant also invested in Orna’s $221 million Series B financing round.
Merck is paying $25 million to kick off a research partnership with Cerevance, a startup that analyzes donor brain tissue to find novel targets for new neurological disorder drugs. While Cerevance’s lead program is a Parkinson’s disease drug, Merck wants to see if the startup’s technology can help it discover and develop new Alzheimer’s disease drugs.
Merck is partnering with Orion on the clinical development and potential commercialization of a new drug for advanced prostate cancer. Though Merck already has a piece of the prostate cancer drug market, Orion’s drug would offer a new approach for treating cancers that have become resistant to currently available hormone therapies.
At the Abarca Forward conference earlier this year, George Van Antwerp, managing director at Deloitte, discussed how social determinants of health and a personalized member experience can improve medication adherence and health outcomes.
Merck is still at the front of the pack of companies developing new medicines to treat chronic cough, but the company was dealt a setback as the FDA turned down the pharma giant’s application and asked for additional efficacy data. No safety issues were raised, according to Merck.
Merck antiviral drug molnupiravir received emergency authorization, joining Pfizer’s Paxlovid as the only authorized oral antiviral drugs for treating Covid-19. Though the Merck and Pfizer antivirals appear to work against the omicron variant, FDA officials stressed that these drugs are authorized only for certain patients and they are not a substitute for vaccination.
A look at how healthcare organizations are collaborating with Microsoft to enhance patient engagement, accelerate healthcare innovation, improve clinical and operational insights, and more.
Panelists at HLTH's patient engagement track, hosted by MedCity News, zeroed in on three strategies for achieving patient centricity: building trust, engaging health navigators and providing easy-to-understand health information.
We will highlight Build My Health's revenue practice management tools, which could help physician practices add up to $250,000 to their practices.
Merck is looking for products that diversify its portfolio beyond reliance on cancer drug Keytruda, and it sees a potential blockbuster cardiovascular drug from Acceleron Pharma as fitting the bill. The pharma giant is paying $11.5 billion to acquire the biotech, and executives say they’re still on the hunt for more deals.
FDA approval of the Merck drug, belzutifan, covers treatment of tumors caused by von Hippel-Lindau disease, an inherited disorder associated with several types of cancer. Merck added the small molecule to its pipeline two years ago as part of a $1.2 billion acquisition.
FDA approval of a therapy that pairs drugs from Eisai and Merck allows the combination to become a first-line treatment for renal cell carcinoma. It’s the latest approval for the partners, which have been working together since 2018.
Merck and Evidation Health launched a study to see if data from smartphones and wearables could be used to detect and monitor the treatment of Alzheimer’s Disease.
Vaxneuvance, a Merck pneumococcal vaccine, is now approved by the FDA. The intramuscular shot protects against 15 pneumococcal strains—five fewer than the 20 covered by a Pfizer pneumococcal vaccine that the FDA approved in June.