said it plans to acquire privately-held OncoImmune for $425 million in cash, gaining rights to an under-the-radar drug that's shown striking results in hospitalized patients with Covid-19.in September to reduce the risk of respiratory failure or death by more than 50% in patients hospitalized with Covid-19 and requiring oxygen, Merck said in a statement Monday.
With cases of Covid-19 averaging almost 170,000 a day in the U.S. and a record number of people in the hospital with the disease, a drug that could speed recovery significantly and reduce the risk of death or of patients getting so severely ill they require ventilators could make a major difference in the pandemic.
Though they caught little of the world's attention, one person who did notice was Moncef Slaoui, chief advisor to the U.S. government's Operation Warp Speed. He noted in a telephone interview Nov. 1 that the data for OncoImmune's drug have "just been incredible," noting a "relative mortality impact that's very clear."
In addition to the potential to help with the pandemic, Merck acquired OncoImmune because it sees possibilities for CD24Fc beyond Covid-19. It's shown promise for graft versus host disease, a dangerous immune reaction that can happen after bone marrow transplantation, and Perlmutter said it may have further applications as well.
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