01:39 PM EDT, 05/22/2026 (MT Newswires) -- Healthcare stocks rose Friday afternoon, with the NYSE Healthcare Index advancing 0.8% and the State Street Health Care Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLV) adding 1.2%.

The iShares Biotechnology ETF (IBB) increased 0.2%.

In corporate news, Merck ( MRK ) said Friday the European Medicines Agency's Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use has recommended the approval of Keytruda, in combination with Padcev, to treat a type of bladder cancer. Merck ( MRK ) shares jumped 5%.

Eli Lilly ( LLY ) shares rose 2.2% after it said Friday that a new analysis from two phase 3 trials showed that its GLP-1 pill Foundayo at all doses tested was linked to "clinically significant" weight loss in adults 65 years old and older with obesity or overweight.

Novo Nordisk's ( NVO ) Ozempic and Eli Lilly's ( LLY ) Mounjaro are being linked to better cancer outcomes in four new studies, The Wall Street Journal reported. The weight-loss and diabetes drugs suggest they could reduce tumor progression, lower overall chance of death, and avert the risk of developing breast cancer, the report said. Novo shares added 1%.