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Merck Initiates P-IIb/III (MALBEC) Trial of MK-8748 for Neovascular Age-Related Macular Degeneration

Shots: Merck initiates the P-IIb/III (MALBEC) trial assessing MK-8748 (Tiespectus/EYE201) for the treatment of neovascular (wet) age-related macular degeneration (NVAMD) The trial will assess the safety & efficacy of two intravitreal dose levels of MK-8748 vs aflibercept (2mg), with Q4W dosing initially for 3mos., then Q8W through Wk. 48, followed by individualized dosing intervals, with…

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Merck Receives the EC Approval for Keytruda, Plus CT ± Avastin to Treat PD-L1+ Pt-Resistant Ovarian Carcinoma

Shots: The EC has approved Keytruda/Keytruda SC + paclitaxel ± Avastin for the treatment of adults with PD-L1+ (CPS ≥1) Pt-resistant epithelial ovarian, fallopian tube or primary peritoneal carcinoma, who have received 1 or 2 prior systemic therapies, in all 30 EEA member states Approval was based on the P-III (KEYNOTE-B96/ENGOT-ov65) trial data assessing Keytruda…

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Merck Signs ~$838M AI-Driven Antibody Discovery Deal with Infinimmune

Shots: Infinimmune has partnered with Merck to discover & develop antibody candidates against multiple undisclosed targets selected by Merck using Infinimmune’s human-first antibody discovery platform As per the deal, Infinimmune will use its Anthrobody discovery platform & Glimpse antibody language model to discover & optimize antibodies from human immune repertoires, enabling large-scale B-cell screening to…

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Quotient Therapeutics & Merck Enter ~$2.2B Partnership to Discover Novel Drug Targets in IBD

Shots: Quotient has entered into a multi-year research collaboration agreement with Merck to discover novel drug targets in inflammatory bowel disease leveraging Quotient’s somatic genomics platform tech Through its somatic genomics platform, Quotient analyzes patient tissue to identify disease-causing or protective mutations, generating insights that inform novel therapeutic strategies across multiple conditions, including IBD As…

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Top 20 Life Sciences Deals of 2025 

Shots:  From AI-powered discovery to next-generation biologics and gene editing, 2025 was a blockbuster year for life sciences dealmaking. Pharma and biotech companies signed multibillion-dollar partnerships and acquisitions to accelerate innovation across oncology, cardiometabolic diseases, neurology, and rare disorders.  Platform technologies dominated the deal landscape, with big pharma securing access to cutting-edge modalities from bispecific…

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Merck and Eisai Present P-III (LITESPARK-011) Trial Data on Welireg + Lenvima in Advanced Renal Cell Carcinoma (RCC) at ASCO GU 2026

Shots: Merck & Eisai has reported the P-III (LITESPARK-011) trial data assessing Welireg (belzutifan; 120mg, PO, QD) + Lenvima (lenvatinib; 20mg, PO, QD) vs cabozantinib in 747 pts with advanced RCC whose disease progressed on or after anti-PD-1/ PD-L1 therapy At mFU of 29mos., trial met its 1EP of improved PFS by 30% (mPFS: 14.8 vs…

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Merck Presents P-III (LITESPARK-022) Trial Data on Keytruda + Welireg in Clear Cell Renal Cell Carcinoma (RCC) at ASCO GU 2026

Shots: Merck has reported the P-III (LITESPARK-022) trial data assessing Keytruda (400mg, Q6W, IV) + Welireg (120mg, QD, PO) vs Keytruda + PBO for 1yr. in 1,841 pts with clear cell RCC following nephrectomy At 28.4mos. mFU, the trial showed improved DFS (1EP), reducing the risk of disease recurrence or death by 28%, with mDFS…

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Merck Carves Out Oncology as Standalone Division

Shots: Merck has reorganized its Human Health division into two units: Oncology, and Specialty, Pharma & Infectious Diseases, to sharpen commercial execution & support a growing portfolio of launches across diverse therapeutic areas Jannie Oosthuizen has been appointed EVP & President, Oncology & MSD International, while Brian Foard will serve as EVP & President, Specialty,…

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