Keytruda now approved for esophageal or GEJ cancer in Europe

Adding to a similar approval from the US Food and Drug Administration in March this year, the European Commission (EC) today approved Keytruda (pembrolizumab), Merck & Co’s (NYSE: MRK) anti-PD-1 therapy,00 in a new indication.

The blockbuster cancer drug is now cleared for use in combination with platinum- and fluoropyrimidine-based chemotherapy for the first-line treatment of patients with locally advanced unresectable or metastatic carcinoma of the esophagus or human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-negative gastroesophageal junction (GEJ) adenocarcinoma in adults whose tumors express PD-L1 (Combined Positive Score [CPS] ≥10). Keytruda generated 2020 sales of $14.4 billion for Merck.

Clinical backing