The Merck logo is seen at a gate to the Merck & Co campus in Rahway, New Jersey, U.S., July 12, 2018. REUTERS/Brendan McDermidhopes to patent a new formulation of its $20 billion cancer immunotherapy Keytruda that can be injected under the skin, allowing it to protect its best-selling drug from competition expected as soon as 2028.
While Merck has disclosed that it is developing subcutaneous versions of Keytruda, it has not previously said that it expects the new formulation to become the most widely used version of the drug after it is rolled out and an engine for growth toward the end of the decade. "It's the way the pharmaceutical companies now use that system -- it's all about taking up as much space as possible, making it difficult for anybody to enter," Amin said. "Keytruda is going to be the next Humira by all accounts."
"Theoretically, in the US, they could transition all of the market," Mizuho analyst Mara Goldstein said, "depending on how quickly they can get it to market."
JeremyMen2 PP991PP Does this reduce the imperitive for Merck to do a deal with Immutep?