Merck: Keytruda in Combination Reduced Risk of Death in Certain Esophageal Cancer Patients

   By Stephen Nakrosis 
 

Merck & Co. Inc. on Monday said data from a Phase 3 trial of Keytruda in combination with platinum-based chemotherapy showed the treatment led to a reduced risk of death in certain esophageal cancer patients.

The company said its KEYNOTE-590 trial was evaluating Keytruda in combination with platinum-based chemotherapy as a "first-line treatment of patients with locally advanced or metastatic esophageal and gastroesophageal junction cancer."

According to Merck, "Keytruda plus chemotherapy demonstrated superior overall survival and progression-free survival versus chemotherapy in these patients regardless of PD-l1 expression status and tumor histology." Merck also said, "Keytruda in combination with chemotherapy significantly improved overall survival, reducing the risk of death by 27% versus chemotherapy in all randomized patients."

The data were presented at the European Society for Medical Oncology Virtual Congress 2020 on Sept. 21, Merck said.

Merck added that it will be sharing the data with regulatory authorities worldwide.

--Write to Stephen Nakrosis at [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

September 21, 2020 13:23 ET (17:23 GMT)

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