Merck KGaA presents clinical trial data for Erbitux

DARMSTADT, Germany A biotech drug originally approved to treat neck cancer also may treat non-small cell lung cancer, according to study data presented at a conference in San Francisco on Aug. 2.

Merck KGaA announced the presentation of data from an analysis of four mid-stage and late-stage clinical trials of Erbitux (cetuximab) at the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer’s 13th World Conference on Lung Cancer.

The analysis, which included data on more than 2,000 patients, found that when added to first-line chemotherapy, Erbitux increased overall survival in patients with NSCLC.

Merck KGaA markets Erbitux in Europe, while Bristol-Myers Squibb and Eli Lilly & Co. subsidiary ImClone Systems market it in the United States. Merck KGaA is a separate company from United States-based Merck & Co. and operates in the United States under the name EMD.