Merck, Pfizer to Collaborate With Dako for Development of Companion Diagnostic Test

Pharmaceutical giants Merck and Pfizer have reached a collaboration agreement with Agilent Technologies company Dako for the development of a potential companion diagnostic test. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

The agreement enables the companies to develop the test to assess programmed death-ligand 1 protein expression levels in tumor tissue, along with its microenvironment.

The test is part of the protocols in ongoing clinical trials of avelumab, an investigational immune checkpoint inhibitor.

Avelumab has not been approved for use in the U.S., E.U., Canada, or elsewhere. — Michael Cipriano