Daiichi Sankyo, Merck sign cancer therapy deal of up to $22 billion

Japanese pharmaceutical company Daiichi Sankyo Co. will receive payments totaling up to $22 billion from U.S. counterpart Merck & Co. in a tie-up deal covering the development and commercialization of three cancer therapies, the two firms said Friday.

Known as antibody-drug conjugates, the drugs are in different stages of clinical development and are expected to be effective in the treatment of multiple types of solid tumors including those in lungs and ovaries, according to their press releases.

Unlike chemotherapy, antibody-drug conjugates target tumor cells while leaving healthy cells unhar...