German Merck Identifies Pipeline Stars, Plots Course Through A Dynamic Cancer Space

After several years with no new product launches, Merck KGAA is expected to announce imminently the EU filing for its much-delayed multiple sclerosis treatment cladribine, and will supplement this with another submission for its key immune-oncology offering, avelumab, later this year. However, further cladribine filings including in the US will await further discussions with regulators, with the company not prepared to share any timelines yet.

Speaking to analysts on June 20, Merck's chief marketing and strategy office for healthcare, Rehan Verjee, said that over the past few years the company had successfully built up its presence in the emerging markets, particularly China, and taken back rights to the anticancer Erbitux (cetuximab) in Japan. "We are through the worst of the decline in the US [with the multiple sclerosis treatment Rebif (interferon beta-1a)]," he said