Merck bolstering oncology pipeline via $2.2 billion acquisition

22 May 2019

US pharma giant Merck & Co (NYSE: MRK) announced yesterday that it will acquire privately held Peloton Therapeutics in a deal which could exceed $2.2 billion, and which would bring the company a late-stage kidney cancer candidate.

Peloton is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the development of novel small-molecule therapeutic candidates targeting hypoxia-inducible factor-2α (HIF-2α) for the treatment of patients with cancer and other non-oncology diseases. Peloton’s lead candidate is PT2977, a novel oral HIF-2α inhibitor in late-stage development for renal cell carcinoma (RCC).

The market for cancer drugs is estimated at$123 billion worldwide, with Merck's own blockbuster immunotherapy Keytruda (pembrolizumab) taking a handsome $7.2 billion stake last year, and gaining approval last month for treating renal cell cancer in the USA.

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