Merck and Sanofi-aventis laboratories to collaborate on cancer research

Scientists from French company Sanofi-aventis and the world's second largest pharmaceutical firm Merck have signed a worldwide agreement to collaborate on the research and development of new oncology treatments.

In particular, the companies' laboratories will work on testing different combinations of agents that could potentially be used to block specific pathways in cancer cells.

The research will involve Merck Serono's MEK inhibitor MSC1936369B, the PI3K/mTOR inhibitor SAR245409 from Sanofi-aventis and the Class I PI3K inhibitor SAR245408.

Dr Wolfgang Wein, Merck Serono's executive vice-president for oncology, said the need to create more personalised cancer care makes it a "logical step" to explore how "new, exciting molecules" can be combined across development pipelines.

Sanofi-aventis senior vice-president and head of global oncology Dr Debasish Roychowdhury added: "This collaboration reinforces our commitment to maximise our portfolio and to provide better treatments for patients with cancer."