Keytruda will be an expensive treatment option but Datamonitor Healthcare still anticipates uptake to be rapid after launch. Merck has disclosed that its new PD-1 inhibitor will cost payers $12,500 per month or about $150,000 per year.This does not compare favorably with the cost of treatment with Zelboraf (vemurafenib; Roche/Daiichi Sankyo), which is approximately $64,000 per year, or Yervoy which is approximately $120,000 per year.t is even slightly more expensive than Opdivo’s price in Japan which is approximately $143,000 per year. Keytruda will be an extremely expensive drug but is still likely to be reimbursed due to the unprecedented response rates it has achieved in heavily pretreated patients.