Neuroscience and oncology fuel high hopes for therapeutic R&D progress among 90-plus surveyed biopharma industry leaders.

From synthetic data to real-world data, from patient engagement to patient stratification, from combination trials to master protocols and from fully decentralized through hybrid to onsite trials, the world of clinical development is undergoing major changes. Fifty executives share their predictions around clinical trial trends for the year ahead.

PDS is getting rights to Merck's M9241, a tumor-targeting interleukin-12 fusion compound which is a key component, together with its own investigational HPV16-targeted immunotherapy, in a triple combination being studied to treat advanced HPV-positive cancers.

The Korean firm’s DNA vaccine has shown promise in a Phase II cervical cancer trial in combination with Merck’s Keytruda, prompting the firm to tout potential in the difficult PD-1 negative group.