Ablynx agrees Merck cancer deal worth up to 1.7 billion euros

By Philip Blenkinsop BRUSSELS (Reuters) – Belgian biotech company Ablynx has signed a deal with Merck & Co worth up to 1.7 billion euros ($2.3 billion) to develop ways of triggering the body to fight cancer by itself. The collaboration involves a new generation of drugs designed to activate the immune system. The first in the field – Bristol-Meyer Squibb's Yervoy – is targeting melanoma, the deadliest form of skin cancer. Rival Merck filed the first part of an application to market its own potential drug for advanced melanoma earlier this month, pushing up its share price.