Nov 26, 2019: Merck announced that KEYTRUDA (Merck’s anti-PD-1 therapy) in combination with carboplatin and paclitaxel for the first-line treatment of patients with metastatic squamous non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) has been approved by the National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) in China.
This new indication was granted full approval based on pivotal Phase 3 KEYNOTE-407 trial and data from the global study in Chinese patients. In china death rate increase every year due to lung cancer, this approval represents an important milestone for the patients facing such difficulties for the treatment.
KEYTRUDA (pembrolizumab Inj) is an humanized monoclonal antibody that blocks the interaction between PD-1 and its ligands, PD-L1 and PD-L2, in that way activating T lymphocytes which may affect both tumor cells and healthy cells. https://www.mrknewsroom.com/news-release/oncology-newsroom/mercks-keytruda-pembrolizumab-now-approved-china-first-line-treatment
