Merck sales and marketing update

The U.K.’s NICE issued draft guidance recommending against the use of Keytruda pembrolizumab from Merck to treat locally advanced or metastatic non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) in adults whose tumors express PD-L1 and who have had at least one prior chemotherapy regimen. In August, the European Commission approved the mAb against PD-1 for the indication.

According to NICE, the most plausible incremental cost effective ratio (ICER) per quality-adjusted life year (QALY) gained with Keytruda would be greater than L50,000 ($64,285), higher than the range usually considered a cost-effective use of NHS resources, even when considering that the mAb against PD-1 is a life-extending, end-of-life treatment. ...