Merck Presents Update on Tepotinib in Advanced Lung Cancer at ASCO 2018

"These data support our plans to continue with the clinical development of tepotinib in this particularly aggressive, advanced lung cancer. Patients with this form of non-small cell lung cancer currently have a poor prognosis and limited treatment options," said Luciano Rossetti, M.D., Executive Vice President, Global Head of Research & Development at the biopharma business of Merck. "Tepotinib is an important late-stage investigational therapy and a key part of our strategic focus on innovative precision medicines."

Tepotinib, discovered in-house at Merck, is an investigational inhibitor of the c-Met receptor tyrosine kinase. Alterations of the c-Met signaling pathway are found in various cancer types and correlate with aggressive tumor behavior and poor clinical prognosis. Tepotinib has been designed with the potential to improve outcomes in aggressive tumors that have a poor prognosis and harbor these specific mutations. In March, the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare granted SAKIGAKE 'fast-track' designation to tepotinib in patients with NSCLC harboring MET exon 14 skipping mutations.

In addition to tepotinib, Merck is sharing data from across its oncology and immuno-oncology pipeline at ASCO 2018, including investigational immunotherapy M7824 and updates from its DNA Damage Response portfolio. Merck is committed to exploring an array of targets and taking creative scientific approaches to developing novel therapies for hard-to-treat cancers.

*Tepotinib is the recommended International Nonproprietary Name (INN) for the c-Met kinase inhibitor (MSC 2156119J). Tepotinib is currently under clinical investigation and not approved for any use anywhere in the world.

About Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer 

Globally, lung cancer is the most common cause of cancer-related deaths in men and the second most common in women,¹ responsible for more deaths than colon, breast and prostate cancer combined.² NSCLC is the most common type of lung cancer, accounting for 80 to 85% of all lung cancers.³ MET exon 14 skipping mutations occur in 3-4% of lung cancers.^5,6 The five-year survival rate for people diagnosed with lung cancer that has spread (metastasized) to other areas of the body is 1%.⁴

About Tepotinib

Tepotinib is an investigational, small-molecule inhibitor of the c-Met receptor tyrosine kinase discovered in-house at Merck. Alterations of the c-Met signaling pathway are found in various cancer types and correlate with aggressive tumor behavior and poor clinical prognosis. Tepotinib is currently being investigated in a Phase II study in NSCLC.

About SAKIGAKE

SAKIGAKE designation is granted by the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, promoting research and development in Japan and aiming at early practical application for innovative pharmaceutical products, medical devices and regenerative medicines. SAKIGAKE designation can reduce a drug's review period down from 12 months to a target of 6 months.

The system's objective is to designate drugs that have the potential of prominent effectiveness against serious and life-threatening diseases in order to make them available to patients in Japan ahead of the rest of the world.

All Merck Press Releases are distributed by e-mail at the same time they become available on the Merck Website. Please go to http://www.merckgroup.com/subscribe to register online, change your selection or discontinue this service.

About Merck 

Merck is a leading science and technology company in healthcare, life science and performance materials. Almost 53,000 employees work to further develop technologies that improve and enhance life - from biopharmaceutical therapies to treat cancer or multiple sclerosis, cutting-edge systems for scientific research and production, to liquid crystals for smartphones and LCD televisions. In 2017, Merck generated sales of € 15.3 billion in 66 countries.

Founded in 1668, Merck is the world's oldest pharmaceutical and chemical company. The founding family remains the majority owner of the publicly listed corporate group. Merck holds the global rights to the Merck name and brand. The only exceptions are the United States and Canada, where the company operates as EMD Serono, MilliporeSigma and EMD Performance Materials.

References 

1. American Cancer Society (2015) Global facts & figures third edition. Available from: http://www.cancer.org/acs/groups/content/@research/documents/document/acspc-044738.pdf. Accessed February 2018
2. American Cancer Society (2017) Key statistics for lung cancer. Available from: https://www.cancer.org/cancer/non-small-cell-lung-cancer/about/key-statistics.html. Accessed February 2018.
3. American Cancer Society (2016) What is non-small cell lung cancer? Available from: https://www.cancer.org/cancer/non-small-cell-lung-cancer/about/what-is-non-small-cell-lung-cancer.html. Accessed February 2018.
4. Cancer.net. Lung cancer - non-small cell: statistics. Available from: http://www.cancer.net/cancer-types/lung-cancer-non-small-cell/statistics. Accessed February 2018.
5. Lutterbach B et al. Lung cancer cell lines harboring MET gene amplification are dependent on Met for growth and survival. Cancer Res. (2007) 67(5):2081-8.
6. Wong MCS, et al. Incidence and mortality of lung cancer: global trends and association with socioeconomic status. Sci. Rep. (2017) 7:143000: doi: 10.1038/s41598-017-14513-7.

(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20151207/293543LOGO)

SOURCE Merck