Merck & Co. MRK said Friday a late-stage trial of its blockbuster cancer drug Keytruda plus trastuzumab, fluoropyrimidine- and platinum-containing chemotherapy achieved positive results as a treatment for patients with a rare form of esophageal cancer. The Phase 3 trial trial showed a statistically significant improvement in progression-free survival in the treatment of patients with human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-positive locally advanced unresectable or metastatic gastric or gastroesophageal junction (GEJ) adenocarcinoma, the company said, reducing the risk of death by 28% in a follow-up of 28.4 months. “The majority of patients with gastroesophageal cancer are diagnosed at an advanced stage, at which point, historically, they’ve faced extremely poor outcomes,” said Dr. Yelena Y. Janjigian, Chief Attending Physician, Gastrointestinal Oncology, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, and the global Principal Investigator for the KEYNOTE-811 trial. Keytruda received regulatory approval for the treatment in May of 2021 under accelerated approval, but that was contingent on confirmatory trials. Merck’s stock has fallen 9.5% in the year to date, while the S&P 500 SPX has gained 11.4%.
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