Merck filed last month for approval from the Food and Drug Administration for the use of its drug Gardasil by males between the ages 9 to 26, CNBC has confirmed. Since 2006, Gardasil has been approved as a means of preventing cervical and other types of cancer in girls and women. Males carry and transmit the sexually-transmitted virus HPV, which is the leading cause of cervical cancer. Gardasil, a vaccine against HPV, has been a blockbuster product for Merck, but sales growth for the drug has slowed. Approval for boys and older women could help reinvigorate that.

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Contaminated children's vaccines and other potentially serious concerns were spotted by federal regulators who combed Merck & Co.'s vaccine plant in the Philadelphia suburbs, according to a published report. Unwanted fibers on vaccine vial stoppers also were among the areas of concern cited by inspectors from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, The Philadelphia Inquirer reported in Thursday's editions.