Monday, April 9, 2018

Friday Past: While It Was Bad News For Incyte, The Merck Downdraft On The NYSE Seemed An Overreaction...


Regular readers will recall that we specifically discussed this collaborative immuno oncology Phase III melanoma study almost a year ago. [And that one was updating a broader overall backgrounder -- from February 2014, or four years ago.]

As is becoming increasingly clear, Kenilworth's pembrolizumab seems most potent against cancers that express a specific set of proteins -- in significant amounts. Immuno-oncology it seems, will be largely about tailoring the cocktail, to the specific patient. Here is a bit -- from the Incyte Friday presser:

. . . .Merck. . . today announced that an external Data Monitoring Committee (eDMC) review of the pivotal Phase 3 ECHO-301/KEYNOTE-252 study results evaluating Incyte’s epacadostat in combination with Merck’s KEYTRUDA® in patients with unresectable or metastatic melanoma determined that the study did not meet the primary endpoint of improving progression-free survival in the overall population compared to KEYTRUDA monotherapy. The study’s second primary endpoint of overall survival also is not expected to reach statistical significance. Based on these results, and at the recommendation of the eDMC, the study will be stopped. The safety profile observed in ECHO-301/KEYNOTE-252 was consistent with that observed in previously reported studies of epacadostat in combination with KEYTRUDA. . . .


Even so, it seems to me at least that the selling pressure seen in Merck's shares, on the NYSE on Friday was a bit over-baked. The thesis generally remains solid, and the evidence continues to mount that Keytruda® improves progression free survival in a wide array of solid organ tumors, and in patients with certain protein expression profiles. So sayeth the Condor. . . grin.

Onward then -- on a cloudy April Monday morning, with pristinely shimmering white snows, once again on my greening lawn. . . crazy!

नमस्ते

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