Pharma BD Deal Intelligence
Lenvima became a durable ~$1B/year alliance revenue line for Merck, but the ambitious "LEAP" program to extend Keytruda+Lenvima across 6+ tumor types mostly failed — a partial win riding on one real approval (endometrial cancer) amid a long trial-failure streak.
Full analysis, sources & comparables →Evercore ISI's Umer Raffat noted 'Merck has been extremely focused on flawless trial execution with IO-chemo and has added two important small molecule…
Analysts at the time of CLEAR data viewed KEYTRUDA-LENVIMA as the leading IO-TKI combo in RCC on cross-trial comparisons vs Bristol Myers' Opdivo+Cabometyx,…
LEAP-002 missed in 1L HCC, leading Merck and Eisai to scrap that ambition; analysts framed the readout as a setback that ceded ground to Roche's…
Source summaries from our enrichment pipeline; follow links for originals.
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Merck and Eisai entered a global strategic oncology collaboration to co-develop and co-commercialize lenvatinib (LENVIMA) as monotherapy and in combination with KEYTRUDA (pembrolizumab). Eisai received $300M upfront, up to $650M in option exercise rights through 2020, $450M in R&D reimbursement, plus up to $385M in clinical/regulatory milestones and up to $3.97B in sales-based milestones (~$5.76B aggregate). Eisai books global sales; gross profits split 50/50.
Lenvima became a durable ~$1B/year alliance revenue line for Merck, but the ambitious "LEAP" program to extend Keytruda+Lenvima across 6+ tumor types mostly failed — a partial win riding on one real approval (endometrial cancer) amid a long trial-failure streak.
Assessment window: 10yr post-close.
| Deal | Year | Value | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|
| Merck & Co. Inc. / Eisai Co., Ltd. (this deal) | 2017 | $5.8B | 57 |
| Merck & Co. Inc. / Acceleron Pharma Inc. | 2021 | $11.5B | 90 |
| Merck & Co. Inc. / Peloton Therapeutics Inc. | 2019 | $2.2B | 88 |
| Merck & Co. Inc. / AstraZeneca PLC | 2017 | $8.5B | 87 |
| Merck & Co. Inc. / Moderna, Inc. | 2022 | $250M | 86 |
| Merck & Co. Inc. / Moderna, Inc. | 2016 | $250M | 84 |
| Merck & Co. Inc. / Eisai Co., Ltd. | 2018 | $5.8B | 83 |
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More: 2017 deals · Merck & Co. Inc. deals · Nephrology deals