Kelun Highlights First-Line Plans For Merck-Partnered Trop2 ADC

To differentiate from Daiichi Sankyo/AstraZeneca's Dato-DXd, Kelun and Merck & Co. are targeting the first-line treatment of EGFR wild-type NSCLC with a combination of their antibody-drug conjugate SKB-264 (MK-2870) with an anti-PD-1 antibody. Additionally, Kelun as the sole sponsor is advancing a Phase III study of the ADC as a monotherapy for second-line EGFR inhibitor-failed NSCLC.

China's Sichuan Kelun Pharmaceutical Co Ltd. has stressed a first-line-focused clinical development strategy for its Merck & Co., Inc.-partnered trophoblast antigen 2 (TROP2)-targeted antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) SKB-264 (MK-2870) in epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) wild-type non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), in an effort to differentiate it from AstraZeneca PLC/Daiichi Sankyo Co., Ltd.'s datopotamab deruxtecan (Dato-DXd, DS1062), which works on the same target.

Shenzhen-listed Kelun made fresh overtures on the asset to a number of Chinese institutional investors on 5 July, after AstraZeneca...