Continuing its interest in the head and neck cancer treatment space, Merck KGaA has agreed to in-license the worldwide rights to Debiopharm’s xevinapant, a potentially first-in-class inhibitor of apoptosis proteins antagonist. The deal, which is worth up to €898 M (US$1.1 B), marks the second alliance between the two companies and comes a year after Merck and Pfizer terminated a Phase III study of Bavencio® (avelumab) in locally advanced squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck as it was unlikely to meet the primary endpoint.