Merck & Co.
213 E Grand Ave, South San Francisco, CA
33 Avenue Louis Pasteur, Boston, MA
320 Bent St, Cambridge, MA
33 Avenue Louis Pasteur, Boston, MA
320 Bent St, Cambridge, MA
NEWS
On the FDA’s docket for the back half of September is Merck’s proposed subcutaneous formulation of its blockbuster cancer drug Keytruda.
The biopharma job market remains challenging, based on BioSpace data. In August, job postings live on the website dropped 32% year over year. In addition, during the first eight months of 2025, over 26,000 people were laid off or projected to be laid off.
Claiming that the domestic market undervalues pharma innovation, Merck has decided to pull the plug on all of its R&D efforts in the U.K.
According to analysts, the new data could present a path to accelerated approval for ifinatamab deruxtecan, a product of Merck and Daiichi Sankyo’s troubled ADC partnership.
Higher competition for fewer roles remains the status quo for biopharma professionals, based on BioSpace data. Additionally, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics has reported that recent job growth is lower than previously believed.
From tariffs to drug pricing to the FDA, biopharma CEOs find themselves pulled into policy discussions on this year’s second quarter earnings calls.
George Tidmarsh takes over temporarily at CBER following Vinay Prasad’s abrupt departure; Replimmune trial leaders protest rejection reportedly driven by FDA’s top cancer regulator Richard Pazdur; Merck’s $3 billion savings push claims 6,000 jobs; and Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla addresses President Donald Trump’s new threats around Most Favored Nation drug pricing.
The number of biopharma professionals let go has increased year over year for three straight months. In July, as many as 8,000 people lost or were projected to lose their jobs, due largely to news that Merck projects to cut roughly 6,000 employees as part of a multiyear process.
Merck has characterized its cost-cutting initiative as more of a reallocation of resources to support other, higher-growth areas of its business.
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