It appears pharmaceutical giant Merck is wanting to get a larger piece of the cancer drug pie. The company iaspartnering with Ariad Pharmaceuticals to develop a new cancer treatment (in an experimental stage) with the potential to make the smaller Ariad over a billion greenbacks.Genentech's Avastin has been selling like hotcakes lately, and the world is sure to see a slew of new-generation cancer drugs by 2010 if my crystal ball is correct. Right now, Ariad's experimental cancer drug -- known as 'AP23573' -- is helping define a new category of cancer drugs that block certain proteins and effectively "starve" cancer cells.
To the delight of both Ariad and Merck, AP23573 is on "fast track" mode for a quicker review (and most likely, approval) and it's also been set at a status by the FDA which promotes treatments for rare diseases.
