No sign of Lenvima letting up as monotherapy or in Keytruda combo

Since it first received US approval for thyroid cancer in February 2015, excitement around Eisai’s (TYO: 4523) Lenvima (lenvatinib mesylate) as one of the hottest properties in oncology has steadily been growing.

Some three years and two major approvals later, any remaining doubts about the blockbuster potential of the oral receptor tyrosine kinase (RTK) inhibitor were blown away by Merck & Co (NYSE: MRK) paying $300 million to Eisai - plus more than $5 billion in possible milestones - to claim a share of the development and commercialization rights for Lenvima (lenvatinib).

The deal will also see the companies work together on a series of trials combining Lenvima with Keytruda (pembrolizumab), the US pharma giant’s anti-PD-1 immunotherapy that was  described at this year’s American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting as the ‘king of immuno-oncology’.