Merck Foundation Launches $20 Million Initiative to Advance Equity in U.S. Cancer Care

National effort builds on Foundation's longstanding commitment to helping patients in underserved communities receive high-quality, equitable care

The Merck Foundation (the Foundation) announced today the launch of the Alliance for Equity in Cancer Care (the Alliance), a $20 million, five-year initiative, designed to make cancer care more equitable in the United States by helping patients living in underserved communities receive timely access to high-quality, culturally responsive care.

"The severity of the need to take action on advancing equity in cancer care cannot be overstated and will not be overlooked," said Carmen Villar, CEO of the Merck Foundation. "We must move with urgency and work together to provide all people living with cancer access to high-quality care and treatment. The creation of the Alliance is an important step toward ensuring social determinants of health no longer factor into an individual's ability to receive vital health care."

As part of the initiative, the Foundation is providing grants to select non-profit health care organizations to help develop and implement evidence-informed, innovative programs that advance equity in cancer care. Grantees will work collectively to improve the coordination of patient care from diagnosis through survivorship; strengthen patient engagement in treatment decisions and overall patient-provider communication; build community partnerships that address barriers to care related to social determinants of health; and provide essential psychosocial support services.

Alliance program grantees include:

Nearly 40% of Americans will be diagnosed with cancer in their lifetime. Members of racial and ethnic minority groups, those living in rural areas, low-income individuals and the uninsured are disproportionately affected by cancer, yet often have limited access to cancer screenings, care and treatment. As a result, they may experience later stage diagnoses, delays in treatment and decreased adherence to cancer therapies – with serious negative consequences to their health.

The Foundation is also supporting a National Program Office at Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) Massey Cancer Center , in partnership with the VCU Center on Health Disparities , which will assist Alliance program grantees in building partnerships with community-based organizations and provide technical assistance to support their programs. Additionally, the National Program Office will evaluate the effectiveness of Alliance programs and identify and promote best practices to enhance the delivery of cancer care in the United States.

"There is no one-size-fits-all approach to making sure that cancer care is equitable," says Robert Winn, M.D., director of VCU Massey Cancer Center and director of the Alliance National Program Office. "We are supporting diverse approaches – driven by local community needs – to reduce the unacceptable disparities in cancer care. We hope to improve the lives of people living with cancer and help transform how health systems deliver care so that it meets the medical and social needs of patients."

The Alliance builds on the Foundation's legacy of investing in community-focused programs that advance health equity as it follows other national, multi-year program investments to reduce health disparities and improve access to high-quality care, such as the Alliance to Advance Patient-Centered Cancer Care , Bridging the Gap in Diabetes Care and HIV Care Connect .

About the Merck Foundation

The Merck Foundation is a U.S.-based, private charitable foundation. Established in 1957 by Merck, a leading global biopharmaceutical company, the Foundation is funded entirely by the company and is Merck's chief source of funding support to qualified non-profit charitable organizations. Since its inception, the Foundation has contributed nearly $1 billion to support important initiatives that address critical global health and societal needs that are consistent with Merck's purpose: to save and improve lives around the world. For more information, visit www.merck.com/company-overview/esg/philanthropy/

Media Contacts:

Patrick Ryan
(973) 275-7075

Leland Laury
(610) 659-8856

News Provided by Business Wire via QuoteMedia

MRK
The Conversation (0)
Merck Announces First-Quarter 2023 Financial Results

Merck Announces First-Quarter 2023 Financial Results

  • First Quarter 2023 Reflected Continued Strong Underlying Performance Across Key Growth Drivers, Particularly in Oncology and Vaccines
  • Total Worldwide Sales Were $14.5 Billion, a Decrease of 9% From First Quarter 2022; Excluding LAGEVRIO, Growth Was 11%; Excluding LAGEVRIO and the Impact of Foreign Exchange, Growth Was 15%
    • KEYTRUDA Sales Grew 20% to $5.8 Billion; Excluding the Impact of Foreign Exchange, Sales Grew 24%
    • GARDASIL/GARDASIL 9 Sales Grew 35% to $2.0 Billion; Excluding the Impact of Foreign Exchange, Sales Grew 43%
    • LAGEVRIO Sales Declined 88% to $392 Million; Excluding the Impact of Foreign Exchange, Sales Declined 87%
  • GAAP EPS Was $1.11; Non-GAAP EPS Was $1.40; GAAP and Non-GAAP EPS Include $0.52 of Charges Related to Acquisition of Imago and Collaboration and Licensing Agreement With Kelun-Biotech
  • Announced Proposed Acquisition of Prometheus Biosciences to Strengthen Immunology Pipeline
  • Presented Compelling Data From Innovative Cardiovascular Pipeline With:
    • Positive Phase 3 Results for Sotatercept
    • Positive Phase 2b Results for MK-0616; Plans to Start Phase 3 Studies in 2023
  • Advanced Oncology Research Efforts, Sharing Notable Progress for Earlier Stages of Disease in Certain Tumor Types, Including:
    • Positive Topline Results From Phase 3 KEYNOTE-671 Trial
    • Positive Detailed Results in Collaboration With Moderna From Phase 2b KEYNOTE-942/mRNA-4157-P201 Trial
  • 2023 Financial Outlook
    • Raises and Narrows Expected Full-Year 2023 Worldwide Sales Range To Be Between $57.7 Billion and $58.9 Billion, Including Negative Impact of Foreign Exchange of Approximately 2 Percentage Points; Outlook Includes Approximately $1.0 Billion of LAGEVRIO Sales
    • Lowers and Narrows Expected Full-Year 2023 GAAP EPS Range To Be Between $5.85 and $5.97, Reflecting Zetia Antitrust Litigation Settlement
    • Raises and Narrows Expected Full-Year 2023 Non-GAAP EPS Range To Be Between $6.88 and $7.00, Including Negative Impact of Foreign Exchange of Approximately 4 Percentage Points
    • Outlook Does Not Reflect Any Impact From Proposed Acquisition of Prometheus Biosciences, Which Is Expected to Close in Third Quarter 2023, and Would Result in a One-Time Charge to Both GAAP and Non-GAAP Results of Approximately $10.3 Billion or Approximately $4.00 per Share

Merck (NYSE: MRK), known as MSD outside the United States and Canada, today announced financial results for the first quarter of 2023.

�Inspired by our commitment to bring bold science forward to address critical unmet patient needs, we began 2023 with significant advancements across our innovative pipeline," said Robert M. Davis, chairman and chief executive officer, Merck. "Our first-quarter results are a reflection of the focused execution of our science-led strategy, strong performance across our key growth drivers, continued momentum commercially and operationally, and most importantly the collective and dedicated efforts of our colleagues around the world. I'm proud of the progress we've made, and we will continue to move with speed and agility to deliver value for patients and shareholders, now and well into the future."

News Provided by Business Wire via QuoteMedia

Keep reading...Show less
BRODSKY & SMITH SHAREHOLDER UPDATE: Notifying Investors of the Following Investigations: Spectrum Pharmaceuticals, Inc. , BELLUS Health Inc , Prometheus Biosciences, Inc. , Univar Solutions Inc.

BRODSKY & SMITH SHAREHOLDER UPDATE: Notifying Investors of the Following Investigations: Spectrum Pharmaceuticals, Inc. , BELLUS Health Inc , Prometheus Biosciences, Inc. , Univar Solutions Inc.

Brodsky & Smith reminds investors of the following investigations. If you own shares and wish to discuss the investigation, contact Jason Brodsky ( jbrodsky@brodskysmith.com ) or Marc Ackerman ( mackerman@brodskysmith.com ) at 855-576-4847. There is no cost or financial obligation to you.

Spectrum Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq – SPPI)

News Provided by GlobeNewswire via QuoteMedia

Keep reading...Show less
OTC:BCTXF

BriaCell Announces Grant to Investigator Dr. Saveri Bhattacharya at Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center – Jefferson Health

Highlights:

  • Grant awarded to Dr. Saveri Bhattacharya, Principal Investigator of the Phase I/IIa combination study of Bria-IMT™ with KEYTRUDA® (by Merck) in advanced breast cancer at Thomas Jefferson University.
  • Merck to provide KEYTRUDA® for use in the combination study.
  • The Investigator Grant validates and will build on the encouraging preliminary data from BriaCell’s combination study of Bria-IMT™ with KEYTRUDA® (Link).

BriaCell Therapeutics Corp. (“BriaCell” or the “Company”) (TSXV:BCT, OTCQB:BCTXD), a clinical-stage biotechnology company specializing in targeted immunotherapy for advanced breast cancer, today announced that Dr. Saveri Bhattacharya, a board-certified medical oncologist and recognized expert in breast cancer treatment at the Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center – Jefferson Health in Philadelphia, PA, has been selected to receive support from the Merck Investigator Studies Program (“MISP”). The Investigator Grant is a highly coveted award granted by Merck & Co., Inc. (“Merck”) (NYSE: MRK) to leading investigators with highly innovative clinical studies.

Keep reading...Show less

Merck Announces Q4 and Full-Year 2019 Financial Results

Merck (NYSE:MRK) reported quarterly worldwide sales at US$11.9 billion in Q4 in its financial results for the fourth quarter of 2019 and its full fiscal 2019 year.

As quoted in the press release:

Keep reading...Show less
OTC:BCTXF

BriaCell’s Clinical Data Accepted to be Presented at the Annual Symposium of Society of Surgical Oncology 2020 in Boston

Safety and early efficacy data to be presented from clinical trial of Bria-IMT™ in combination with immune checkpoint inhibitors in advanced breast cancer:

  • Bria-IMT™ in combination with pembrolizumab (KEYTRUDA®; by Merck & Co., Inc.);
  • Bria-IMT™ in combination with INCMGA00012 (by Incyte Corporation).

BriaCell Therapeutics Corp. (“BriaCell” or the “Company”) (TSXV:BCT, OTCQB:BCTXD), a clinical-stage biotechnology company specializing in targeted immunotherapies for advanced breast cancer, is pleased to announce that the data of its clinical studies with its lead product candidate, Bria-IMT™, will be presented the at the Annual Symposium of Society of Surgical Oncology (SSO) 2020 – International Conference on Surgical Cancer Care taking place March 25-28 in Boston, MA.

Keep reading...Show less
Seegnal Inc. (TSXV:SEGN)

Seegnal Inc. Announces Extension of Maccabi Health Services Contract

Seegnal Inc. (TSXV: SEGN) ("Seegnal" or the "Corporation"), a global leader in SaaS clinical division support solutions, is pleased to announce that effective September 8, 2025, it has amended its contract with Maccabi Health Services ("Maccabi") for an additional six years and has also expanded the scope of the contract to include all of Maccabi's pharmacies and additional nurses. Maccabi is the second largest Healthcare Management Organization ("HMO") in Israel, serving over 2.6 million Israelis and is renowned for its use of technology and emphasis on patient-centered care, according to Maccabi's website here.

Pursuant to the amended agreement, Seegnal will continue to deliver its patented prescription co-pilot platform for an additional six years, to September 22, 2031, while expanding the scope to nurses and pharmacists in all of Maccabi's nationwide pharmacies. Maccabi is the first in Israel and one of the first HMOs worldwide to offer an end-to-end safety coverage throughout the patient journey, allowing complete visibility to pharmacists in the pharmacies into clinician decision while prescribing patient centric medication. The expanded contract was changed from a fixed base contract to Seegnal's current SaaS based model based on Quarterly Recurring License Fees and is expected to generate additional revenue for the Corporation.

Keep reading...Show less
Numinus Wellness Inc. Announces Third Quarter Fiscal 2025 Results

Numinus Wellness Inc. Announces Third Quarter Fiscal 2025 Results

All financial results are reported in Canadian dollars unless otherwise stated.

Numinus Wellness Inc. (TSX: NUMI) (OTCQB: NUMIF) (FSE: LR23) ("Numinus" or the "Company") a mental health care company focused on innovative behavioral health treatments with a focus on safe, evidence-based psychedelic-assisted therapies, today announced its financial results for the three months ended May 31, 2025 ("Q3 2025 ").

News Provided by Newsfile via QuoteMedia

Keep reading...Show less
Invion Executive Chair and CEO Thian Chew.

Invion CEO Maps Path to Peer-level Valuation as Momentum for Cancer Treatment Trials Builds

Invion (ASX:IVX) Executive Chair and CEO Thian Chew says the company sees a path to a rerate toward clinical-stage oncology peers — typically valued from AU$30 million to AU$40 million up to several hundred million — if it executes on a trio of near-term priorities: simplifying licencing, cleaning up shareholder financing structures and dialling up investor awareness.

In an interview with the Investing News Network, Chew stressed that Invion’s fundamentals are already in place: a platform therapy being tested across multiple cancers with an active clinical program, and a US Food and Drug Administration orphan drug designation potentially fast tracking approvals.

“The challenge is making sure people invest the time to understand where we're at. So if we solve all those three, even without doing any more development work, then we believe that we can get around the comparable levels of valuation, and that creates some interesting opportunities for us,” Chew said.

Keep reading...Show less
Numinus Wellness Inc. Announces Second Quarter Fiscal 2025 Results

Numinus Wellness Inc. Announces Second Quarter Fiscal 2025 Results

All financial results are reported in Canadian dollars unless otherwise stated.

Numinus Wellness Inc.  (TSX: NUMI) (OTCQB: NUMIF) (FSE: LR23) ("Numinus" or the "Company"), a mental health care company focused on innovative behavioral health treatments with a focus on safe, evidence-based psychedelic-assisted therapies, today announced its financial results for the three months ended February 28, 2025 ("Q2 2025").

News Provided by Newsfile via QuoteMedia

Keep reading...Show less
Large pharmaceutical pill with gold dollar sign in the middle. Stock tickers and charts in the background.

Top 5 Small-cap Pharma Stocks of 2025

Today's pharmaceutical stocks are facing the challenges of government-imposed drug price caps, waning demand for COVID-19 vaccines and global stock market upheaval. However, the industry's major underlying drivers — higher rates of cancer and chronic disease — are still at play and not expected to dissipate.

The US reigns supreme in the pharma market, both in terms of drug demand and development. In 2024, 50 novel medicines were approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), compared to 55 such approvals in 2023. Last year's FDA approvals include Eli Lilly and Company's (NYSE:LLY) Alzheimer's disease treatment Kisunla.

Big pharma largely steals the show, but some small- and mid-cap NASDAQ pharma stocks have also made gains.

Keep reading...Show less

Latest Press Releases

Related News

×