Merck and GlaxoSmithKline Collaborate on Pazopanib

Merck & Co. announced the initiation of a clinical trial to evaluate the combination of the company’s investigational anti-PD-1 immunotherapy, MK-3475, and GlaxoSmithKline’s (GSK) orally administered kinase inhibitor, pazopanib, for the treatment of advanced renal-cell carcinoma.

Merck and GSK entered a collaboration to study MK-3475 with pazopanib and other agents in the GSK portfolio. This Phase I and Phase II clinical trial is designed to evaluate the safety and efficacy of a combination of MK-3475 and pazopanib in treatment naïve patients with advanced renal-cell carcinoma.