Oncology is the largest therapeutic area in the biopharma industry in terms of sales. The rapid rise in recent years of drugs to treat diabetes and manage weight loss may have disrupted traditional rankings, but it’s safe to say that oncology will remain one of the most lucrative fields.
ImmunityBio (NASDAQ: IBRX ) There is a mid-cap pharmaceutical manufacturer that is making waves in this space right now; The company’s shares have risen over the past 12 months. Although ImmunityBio looks promising, investors who are betting on the cancer treatment for the long term should pick a bigger, safer stock.
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One that investors should consider today Merk (NYSE: MRK ). Here is Roland.
ImmunityBio developed a drug called Anktiva, which, in 2024, won approval in the United States to attack bladder cancer. Anktiva made a lot of progress last year. For 2025, ImmunityBio reported total revenue of $113 million, which is about 668% more than last year.
To be fair, since Antiva was only approved in April 2024 (and launched later), it only spent half of that year on the market. So the sales growth compared to 2025, when it was on the market for a whole year, is not completely apples to apples.
Antiva obviously has a lot of momentum, and Immune Bio doesn’t think it’s going to stop. The company is preparing to launch in other regions, including the European Union and Saudi Arabia. In addition, the biotech company plans to expand certain labels for the drug. Anktiva is under clinical trials in lung cancer, lymphoma, ovarian cancer, and other conditions such as HIV infection.
While ImmunityBio is performing well right now, value may be a concern. The company’s market cap is $9.7 billion — with sales of less than $500 million last year. True, the market is remarkable. Even so, there is considerable risk and uncertainty.
Inactiva can fail in intermediate stage or basic studies; Commercial rollouts in other countries can be problematic. And immune bios may face regulatory hurdles. If any of these things happen, the company’s shares will fall, perhaps significantly. Therefore, despite Inactiva’s strong move, Immunity shares look risky.
What about Merck? The company may not grow its sales by 700% year over year, but it generates steady revenue and income. Merck’s most important product is Keytruda, which is the best-selling cancer drug in the world (and second best-selling overall). Keytruda is approved in many different cancers; It has won more than 30 awards in the United States alone. It is impressive.
