The Food and Drug Administration Monday approved Merck's cancer drug Keytruda as an initial treatment for patients with lung cancer, reports Reuters.
The immunotherapy drug, first approved in 2014, can now be used as a first line treatment for patients with metatastic non-small cell lung cancer who have high levels of PD-L1, a protein that makes individuals more receptive to immunotherapy treatments.
Seamus Fernandez, an analyst at Leerink, expects the approval to cement Kenilworth, N.J.-based Merck's position as a leader in first line lung cancer treatments for the next 12 to 18 months, according to the report.
Annual sales of Keytruda are now pegged to hit $8.1 billion in 2021, based on several forecasts compiled by Thomson Reuters, a New York City-based information firm.
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