Sacituzumab tirumotecan

A group of licensing agreements, a CEO's warning about overenforcement of China dealmaking and multiple ESMO readouts made our news this week. Among a string of licensing deals from last week, Takeda's tie-up with Innovent stole the show. Nkarta CEO Paul Hastings recently spoke to the importance of the industry's collaborations with Chinese biopharma companies. Asian biopharmas had a large presence at a major cancer conference over the weekend. Plus more.1. Takeda pays Innovent $1.2B upfront, offers whopping $10B-plus in biobucks for cancer assets In a year full of billion-dollar licensing deals involving Chinese biotechs, Takeda’s tie-up with Innovent stands out. The Japanese pharma giant agreed to put down $1.2 billion upfront and offered up more than $10 billion in potential milestones to get its hands on a pair of cancer assets from the Chinese drug developer. For Takeda, the deal represents an effort to identify sources of growth for the next decade as inflammatory bowel disease medicine Entyvio creeps toward its patent cliff.  2. ‘We can have TikTok. Why can’t we have drugs?’: Nkarta CEO Hastings warns against China biotech penalties At Fierce Biotech Week earlier this month, Nkarta CEO Paul Hastings urged the federal government to not crack down on the industry’s licensing of drug candidates from China. “We can have TikTok,” the biotech CEO explained, so “why can’t we have drugs?” The comments come at a time of geopolitical tensions, but China's licensing deals represent a critical source of innovation for the U.S. biopharma industry. 3. Licensing galore: Roche ties up with Hansoh on ADCs as Rani rounds out week with Chugai pact 4. Kite puts $1.6B on the line to pair up with China’s Pregene for another in vivo CAR-T deal Toward the end of last week, several Asian biopharma companies inked high-dollar licensing deals. In one deal, Roche agreed to pay up to $1.45 billion in exchange for an ex-China license to develop, manufacture and sell Hansoh's experimental CDH17-targeted antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) dubbed HS-20110. In addition to that deal, Rani Therapeutics linked up with Japan’s Chugai, a Roche subsidiary, in an oral delivery technology pact that could climb to more than $1 billion in value. Rounding out the action, Gilead’s Kite Pharma showcased its interest in in vivo CAR-T tech by striking an agreement with China’s Pregene. 5. Merck grows more ambitious about 'workhorse' TROP2 ADC as partner Kelun posts phase 3 wins The European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) congress over the weekend featured data presentations from numerous Asian biopharmas, including Merck’s ADC partner Kelun-Biotech. Sacituzumab tirumotecan (sac-TMT), developed by China’s Kelun and licensed by Merck, excelled in separate studies in lung cancer and breast cancer, according to data presented at ESMO. The results contribute to Merck’s optimism about the candidate, Marjorie Green, M.D., Merck’s senior vice president and head of oncology global clinical development, told Fierce. 6. ESMO: Daiichi, Merck power ovarian cancer ADC toward pivotal test after passing phase 2 Also at ESMO, Merck and partner Daiichi Sankyo released new data for their CDH6-directed ADC raludotatug deruxtecan (R-DXd). In a phase 2 study assessing the candidate in patients with recurrent ovarian, primary peritoneal or fallopian tube cancer that was resistant to platinum chemotherapy, investigators recorded an overall response rate of 50.5%. The partners are now readying a push into phase 3. 7. ESMO: AZ, Daiichi’s Datroway outshines Gilead’s Trodelvy in first global TROP2 showdown 8. ESMO: AZ, Daiichi unleash Enhertu's 2-fisted power, aiming to reshape early breast cancer landscape Daiichi Sanyko’s presence at ESMO wasn’t limited to the R-DXd presentation. In fact, the Japanese company’s ADC alliance with AstraZeneca yielded two more impressive showings. As the partners duel with Gilead Sciences in the TROP2 ADC field, a new round of readouts points to an advantage for Datroway. And for the older Enhertu, a pair of trial readouts in early breast cancer open the door to a potential opportunity to advance patient care—while raising a new question. 9. China pricing pressure continues to weigh on Roche's diagnostics business Even as Roche contends with pricing pressures in China, the company’s diagnostics division was able to eke out 1% sales growth during the first 9 months of 2025. Overall, Roche’s diagnostic sales in the Asia-Pacific region were down 15% during the period, while sales in all other geographic regions were up. Year-to-date, Roche’s China diagnostic sales fell 27%, Matt Sause, CEO of Roche Diagnostics, said on Thursday. 10. ESMO: Akeso, Summit's ivonescimab beats PD-1 in first chemo combo win in 1st-line NSCLC As China’s Akeso and its U.S. partner Summit Therapeutics continue to break new ground with their PD-1xVEGF bispecific ivonescimab, the drug delivered another first at ESMO. Data revealed at the conference show that the therapy can delay tumor progression versus a PD-1 inhibitor as part of a combination with chemotherapy. The results come from a study limited to China.Other News of Note: 11. Lilly, Cipla link up in India tirzepatide distribution pact (release) 12. Japan VC firm Fast Track Initiative raises roughly $130M (release) 13. ESMO: GSK says 'stay tuned' for more ADC data after partner Hansoh posts 49% response rate 14. Regeneron settles Eylea patent dispute with Celltrion, allowing another biosimilar to launch at end of 2026 15. Astellas walks away from gene therapy pact with Taysha before pivotal trial launch 

The Spree River, Berlin, Germany iStock, TomasSereda Pfizer, Merck, AstraZeneca and Bristol Myers Squibb were among the many biopharmas showing off novel cancer modalities at ESMO, with antibody-drug conjugates, bispecific antibodies and kinase inhibitors demonstrating encouraging efficacy and safety for various cancers. The 2025 congress of the European Society for Medical Oncology came to a close on Tuesday, wrapping up five days of cutting-edge cancer research that pushed the boundaries of the field. Here, BioSpace rounds up the impactful and cutting-edge presentations at ESMO, the ones most likely to push forward patients’ clinical care and the broader biopharma industry. ADC Arena Heats Up Pfizer and Merck made waves in the antibody-drug conjugate sector, joining together to combine the former’s ADC Padcev with the latter’s mega-blockbuster PD-1 inhibitor Keytruda. Interim data from the Phase III EV-303/KEYNOTE-905 trial showed that the combo regimen reduced by 60% the risk of tumor recurrence, progression or death in patients with muscle-invasive bladder cancer (MIBC) who are ineligible for cisplatin treatment. Padcev plus Keytruda also led to a 50% improvement overall survival versus surgery alone, an effect that was statistically significant. Analysts at Guggenheim Partners wrote in a Tuesday note that these findings point to the “potential to change standard-of-care treatment for cisplatin-ineligible MIBC patients” and are likely to “provide [a] tailwind” for Padcev. Aside from its Padcev partnership, Merck showed work from its ADC alliance with China’s Sichuan Kelun-Biotech, which has the companies working on the anti-TROP2 ADC sacituzumab tirumotecan, being tested for EGFR-mutated non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Results from a Phase III trial, conducted in China , demonstrated a significant 51% reduction in the risk of death or disease progression. Overall survival (OS) outcomes were likewise significant, with the ADC suppressing the likelihood of death by 40% versus pemetrexed plus platinum-based chemotherapy. Also in the TROP2 game is AstraZeneca with its Daiichi Sankyo–partnered ADC Datroway. At ESMO, the companies showed that Datroway resulted in a significant 43% progression-free survival (PFS) improvement in patients with locally recurrent or metastatic triple-negative breast cancer. The partners also presented data for the HER2-targetig ADC Enhertu. In patients with HER2-positive early breast cancer with residual invasive disease, the therapy resulted in a 53% decrease in the likelihood of death or recurrent invasive disease, as compared with Roche’s Kadcyla. Disease-free survival in these patients likewise improved by 53% after Enhertu treatment. Likewise presenting data at ESMO are Bristol Myers Squibb and SystImmune, which are advancing iza-bren, a bispecific ADC targeting both the EGFR and HER3 proteins. Phase I data pointed to “ promising antitumor activity ,” the companies said, with a confirmed response rate of 55% and a median PFS of 5.4 months. As for safety, common side effects were blood-related, including neutropenia, though most were generally manageable and “rarely” necessitated dose reductions. BMS and SystImmune are testing iza-bren for advanced solid tumors, including metastatic or unresectable NSCLC. Bispecifics on the Rise One of the most highly anticipated presentations at ESMO was for Akeso and Summit Therapeutics’ PD-1/VEGF bispecific antibody ivonescimab, which the partners are testing for advanced NSCLC. In the Phase III HARMONi-6 study, patients treated with ivonescimab plus chemotherapy saw a 40% PFS advantage versus those who were treated with BeOne’s PD-1 inhibitor Tevimbra plus chemotherapy. The companies did not release OS data, but analysts at Truist Securities were nevertheless encouraged by the ESMO presentation. The PFS readout, the analysts wrote, “leaves no room for doubts at this juncture, in our view,” for the benefit of ivonescimab as a frontline NSCLC treatment option. Summit, which is in charge of ivonescimab in the U.S., is planning a regulatory filing for the asset by year-end, management said in its Q3 call earlier this week. The company is specifically eyeing an approval for second-line EGFR-mutated NSCLC. Cutting off the Cascade Kinase blockers gained their own head of steam at ESMO. These are drugs that block signaling cascades that otherwise culminate in a tumor’s growth and proliferation. One such asset is zongertinib, developed by Boehringer Ingelheim for HER2-mutant advanced NSCLC. In the Phase Ib Beamion LUNG-1 study, zongertinib resulted in a 77% objective response rate and 96% disease control rate. Of note, 8% of responders showed no detectable signs of cancer in the body after treatment, while 69% reached partial treatment response. While data were not yet mature at the time, Boehringer reported an “encouraging” 79% PFS rate at six months. Going up against Boehringer is Bayer, which is developing its own tyrosine kinase inhibitor sevabertinib, likewise for HER2-mutated NSCLC. Bayer released results from a Phase I/II study, showing that in those who had been previously treated but not with a HER2-targeted agent, objective response rate reached 64% , which lasted for a median of 9.2 months. Meanwhile, in patients who had been exposed to an anti-HER2 ADC, response rate was 38% and lasted for 8.5 months. Bayer also tested sevabertinib in treatment-naive patients, of whom 71% responded to the agent, with a median duration of 11 months. There was action at ESMO for kinase inhibitors beyond NSCLC. Exelixis, for instance, tested its drug zanzalintinib for metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC), touting a median overall survival of 10.9 months versus 9.4 months in comparators treated with Bayer’s Stivarga. OS estimates for zanzalintinib at 12 and 24 months were 46% and 20%, respectively. Analysts were effusive about these results, with William Blair saying in a Monday note that zanzalintinib set “a new survival bar in the third-line or later mCRC setting.” Exelixis is taking the drug to the FDA with these data and anticipates a filing within the year.