What is Keytruda & why it is important that you know about it?
According to this report by DailyTech, there have been interesting breakthroughs in lung cancer immunotherapy treatment in the form of Keytruda by Merck. We also had a short post about Keytruda a couple of days ago and today’s news further adds on to the drug’s success.
Merck announced the results of two major studies showing Keytruda’s superior ability to slow the progression of advanced lung cancer and reduce risk of death by fifty percent (50%) at the annual meeting of the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO). Study results announced at the ESMO and also published in the October 9th edition of The New England Journal of Medicine suggests that Merck’s Keytruda treatment can offer a “meaningful improvement” over standard chemotherapy treatments.
How Keytruda works
Keytruda works by increasing the ability of the body’s immune system to help detect and fight cancer cells. It blocks the PD-1 pathway and prevents the cancer cells from remaining hidden from the body’s natural immune defense system.
At the same time, the FDA also approved Keytruda for patients with recurrent or metastatic head and neck cancer.
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