Pfizer’s Padcev Plus Keytruda Extends Bladder Cancer Survival

The combination of Padcev, a bladder cancer drug from Pfizer Inc. and Astellas Pharma Inc., and Merck & Co.’s blockbuster immunotherapy Keytruda extended the lives of patients with a hard-to-treat form of the disease.

The drug combination, given before and after surgery, significantly slowed progression of the cancer and improved overall survival compared to surgery alone, Pfizer and Astellas said in a statement Tuesday. The nearly 600 patients in the trial couldn’t tolerate or declined the standard treatment with chemotherapy, giving them few other treatment options beyond surgery alone.