On April 17, 2026 MiNK Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ: INKT), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company pioneering allogeneic invariant natural killer T (allo-iNKT) cell therapies to restore immune balance and treat immune-mediated diseases and cancer, reported data from an investigator-initiated Phase II trial at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, evaluating agenT-797, MiNK’s allo-iNKT cell therapy, in combination with botensilimab (BOT) and balstilimab (BAL), ramucirumab and paclitaxel in patients with advanced PD-1 refractory gastroesophageal adenocarcinoma. The data are being presented at the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) (Free AACR Whitepaper) Annual Meeting, taking place April 17-22, 2026, in San Diego, CA.

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This Phase II trial—the first to evaluate agenT-797 in combination with BOT and BAL in patients with gastroesophageal cancer progressing after frontline therapy, was designed to assess the impact of immune priming and sequencing, with patients receiving induction (agenT-797 alone or with BOT/BAL) followed by combination therapy, or the combination without induction, alongside longitudinal biomarker analyses; in this study (n=17), treatment achieved a 77% disease control rate (DCR) with long-term survival beyond 20 months in a subset, with emerging signals in patients who received the induction strategy had meaningful improvements in PFS (6.9 vs. 3.5 months; HR 0.19; p=0.015) and OS (9.5 vs. 5.2 months), with 43% of patients alive at 12 and 18 months—highlighting durability and survival, rather than response rate, as the most relevant measures of clinical benefit in this PD-1 refractory setting.

"This study reinforces the potential of agenT-797 as an immune orchestrator capable of re-engaging anti-tumor immunity in highly resistant cancers," said Jennifer Buell, Ph.D., President and Chief Executive Officer of MiNK Therapeutics. "These findings suggest that sequencing of treatment may be as important as the treatment itself, as we observed longer survival without disease progression in patients who received an early immune-priming step before the full regimen, together with evidence of immune activation and tumor microenvironment remodeling. The durability of survival observed in induction-treated subset, together with evidence of immune activation, is central to how we, our potential partners, and the FDA evaluate meaningful outcomes and will shape our next phase of development in this hard to treat population."

Efficacy findings from the Phase II (n=17) study included:

DCR was observed in 77% of all treated patients, and long-term survival beyond 20 months was seen in a subset of patients.
Patients treated with an induction cycle had longer progression-free survival (PFS) than those treated without induction, with median PFS of 6.9 months versus 3.5 months (HR 0.19; p=0.015), supporting the potential importance of immune priming and treatment sequencing.
Median overall survival (OS) was 9.5 months in the induction cohort versus 5.2 months without induction, with 43% of induction-treated patients alive at both 12 and 18 months, compared with 20% and 0%, respectively, in the non-induction cohort.
The study did not meet its primary endpoint of ORR; however, disease control and longer-term survival observed in a subset of patients support further study of this approach.
Correlative analyses showed that treatment with BOT, BAL, and agenT-797 was associated with significant intratumoral T cell and dendritic cell infiltration, the formation of organized tertiary lymphoid structures in on-treatment biopsies from a patient with prolonged benefit, and activation of peripheral CD4 and CD8 T cells.

The safety profile was consistent with the component agents. The most common treatment-emergent adverse events among all patients included fatigue, fever, diarrhea, anorexia, nausea and mucositis.Immune-related adverse events included dermatitis, colitis, gastritis, enteritis, hepatitis and hypothyroidism.

Additional analysis of the full biospecimen dataset is ongoing and is expected to provide further insight into immune mechanisms, optimal sequencing, and potential biomarkers that could help identify patients most likely to benefit.

Presentation Details:

Abstract Title: A phase II study of agenT-797, botensilimab (BOT) and balstilimab (BAL) in PD-1 refractory gastroesophageal cancer (GEC)
Presenter: Samuel L. Cytryn M.D.; Gastrointestinal Medical Oncologist, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
Session Name: Phase II and Phase III Clinical Trials
Date/Time: April 20, 2026 | 2:00–5:00 PM PT; 5:00-8:00 PM EDT
Poster Section: 52
Abstract No.: CT166

(Press release, MiNK Therapeutics, APR 17, 2026, View Source [SID1234664517])

On April 17, 2026 Evaxion A/S (NASDAQ: EVAX) ("Evaxion"), a clinical-stage TechBio company developing novel vaccines with its pioneering AI-Immunology platform, reported new data demonstrating that AI-Immunology identifies and selects the most therapeutically relevant vaccine targets. The data will be presented at the AACR (Free AACR Whitepaper) Annual Meeting in San Diego, California, on April 22, 2026.

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86% of the vaccine targets included in Evaxion’s personalized cancer vaccine EVX-01 trigger a tumor-specific immune response. This is a success rate much higher than what has been reported for other methods. The high number reflects a broad yet specific immune response, increasing the likelihood of strong anti-tumor effect and positive clinical outcomes.

"We are delighted with the data demonstrating again the unique capabilities of AI-Immunology in identifying and selecting relevant vaccine targets. This is a further validation of the platform as an effective tool for developing potentially transformational treatments of cancer and other diseases," says Bigitte Rønø, CSO of Evaxion.

Encouraging data
In addition to the 86% success rate, the new data set includes two-year analysis showing durable vaccine-specific immune responses following EVX-01 administration. Notably, high de novo responses (86%) were observed, meaning the vaccine gives rise to a high number of novel tumor specific T cells. This potentially increases the vaccine’s tumor killing ability.

Further, a positive correlation between vaccine target AI-prediction scores and the magnitude of the immune responses was demonstrated, underlining the predictive power of AI-Immunology.

The new data stems from the phase 2 trial investigating EVX-01 in combination with MSD’s (Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA) anti-PD-1 therapy, KEYTRUDA (pembrolizumab) in patients with advanced melanoma. Each patient enrolled in the trial received a unique vaccine designed and manufactured based on their individual biology. KEYTRUDA is a registered trademark of Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC, a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA.

The trial has already yielded encouraging two-year clinical data, including a 75% Objective Response Rate. Its one-year extension was successfully completed earlier this month with three-year clinical data expected to be presented in the second half of 2026.

AACR presentation details
Abstract title: AI-designed personalized neoantigen vaccine, EVX-01, induces durable de novo T-cell responses in advanced melanoma patients
Poster#: 7741
Session category: Clinical research
Session title: Immune response to therapies
Location: Poster section 42
Date/Time: April 22, 2026, at 9am-12pm CST/16-19 CET
Presenter: Mads Lausen Nielsen, PhD, Project Manager at Evaxion

About EVX-01
EVX-01 is a personalized peptide-based cancer vaccine intended for first-line treatment of multiple advanced solid cancers. It is Evaxion’s lead clinical asset.

Designed with our AI-Immunology platform, EVX-01 and is tailored to target the unique tumor profile and immune characteristics of each patient. It engages the patient’s immune system to fight off cancer by mounting a targeted response against tumors.

(Press release, Evaxion, APR 17, 2026, View Source [SID1234664516])

On April 17, 2026 Acrivon Therapeutics, Inc. ("Acrivon" or "Acrivon Therapeutics") (Nasdaq: ACRV), a clinical stage biotechnology company discovering and developing precision medicines utilizing its proprietary Generative Phosphoproteomics AP3 (Acrivon Predictive Precision Proteomics) platform deployed for rational drug design and predictive clinical development, reported preclinical data that showed powerful synergies between its two lead assets and emerging and foundational standard-of-care anti-cancer agents. Both ACR-368, a CHK1/2 inhibitor currently in a registrational-intent Phase 2b study, and ACR-2316, a WEE1/PKMYT1 inhibitor currently in a Phase 1/2 study, showed strong synergy in combination with anti-PD-L1 checkpoint inhibition. Additionally, ACR-368 synergized with a Topo 1 inhibitor, a payload commonly used in ADCs. The data will be presented at the AACR (Free AACR Whitepaper) 2026 Annual Meeting being held in San Diego, CA.

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"We are excited to be presenting these highly actionable data, mechanistically derived from our AP3 platform, at AACR (Free AACR Whitepaper)," said Peter Blume-Jensen, M.D., Ph.D., chief executive officer, president, and co-founder of Acrivon. "Our findings highlight attractive opportunities for future frontline development of ACR-368 and ACR-2316 in combination with immune checkpoint inhibitors and ADCs."

The posters can be found on the Acrivon website under "Posters and Presentations" or by using this LINK.

Poster Presentation Details:

Title Potent synergy between CHK1/2 inhibitor ACR-368 and the ADC payload topoisomerase 1 inhibitor: Rationale for ADC + ACR-368 combination therapy
Date and Time Sunday, April 19, 2026; 2:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m. PT
Session Experimental and Molecular Therapeutics: DNA Damage and Repair 1
Poster Number 239

Title ACR-368 synergizes with PD-L1 blockade by coordinated activation of adaptive and innate immunity pathways to achieve robust anti-tumor efficacy
Date and Time Monday, April 20, 2026; 9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. PT
Session Late-Breaking Research: Immunology 2
Poster Number LB152

Title Treatment with ACR-2316, a potential first- and best-in-class WEE1/PKMYT1 inhibitor, combined with anti-PD-L1 induces complete tumor regression with durable immune memory
Date and Time Monday, April 20, 2026; 2:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m. PT
Session Clinical Research: Combination Immunotherapies
Poster Number 3789

(Press release, Acrivon Therapeutics, APR 17, 2026, View Source [SID1234664515])

On April 17, 2026 Theriva Biologics (NYSE American: TOVX), ("Theriva" or the "Company"), a diversified clinical-stage company developing therapeutics designed to treat cancer and related diseases in areas of high unmet need, reported an upcoming poster presentation of new data and subgroup analyses from the VIRAGE Phase 2b clinical trial evaluating VCN-01 (zabilugene almadenorepvec) plus gemcitabine/nab-paclitaxel in newly-diagnosed metastatic pancreatic cancer patients. Tumor reponse, biomarker data, and subgroup analyses are to be presented at the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) (Free AACR Whitepaper) Annual Meeting to be held in San Diego, CA from 17-22 April 2026.

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Details of the poster presentation are below:

Presenting author: Dr. Manuel Hidalgo, NYU Langone Health Perlmutter Cancer Center, New York, NY
Title: Analysis of tumor and biomarker responses in the VIRAGE Trial, a randomized Phase IIb, open-label, study of nab-paclitaxel and gemcitabine with/without intravenous VCN-01 in patients with metastatic pancreatic cancer (mPDAC)
Poster #: CT162
Date and time: Monday April 20, 2026, 2:00-5:00 PM US PDT
Session: PO.CT01.05 – Phase II and Phase III Clinical Trials
Location: San Diego Convention Center, Hall B, Section 52, Board 26.
"The new data and analyses to be presented at the AACR (Free AACR Whitepaper) meeting further reinforce our confidence in the clinical potential of VCN-01 plus gemcitabine/nab-paclitaxel chemotherapy to help metastatic PDAC patients," said Steven A. Shallcross, Chief Executive Officer of Theriva Biologics. "Taken together, the tumor response and biomarker data support an immune-mediated mode of action for VCN-01, which is consistent with the previously reported clinical observations, showing that patients treated with VCN-01 plus gemcitabine/nab-paclitaxel experienced a significantly protracted duration of response concomitant with a later-stage prolongation of survival compared to patients treated with gemcitabine/nab-paclitaxel alone. We have achieved alignment with both the FDA and the EMA on a proposed pivotal Phase 3 clinical trial to evaluate multiple doses of VCN-01 plus gemcitabine/nab-paclitaxel in first-line metastatic PDAC patients, and we are planning a small study to assess whether more frequent and extended VCN-01 dosing could further improve outcomes."

About Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma

Cancer of the pancreas consists of two main histological types: cancer that arises from the ductal (exocrine) cells of the pancreas or, much less often, cancers may arise from the endocrine compartment of the pancreas. Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma ("PDAC") accounts for more than 90% of all pancreatic tumors. It can be located either in the head of the pancreas or in the body/tail. Pancreatic cancer usually metastasizes to the liver and peritoneum. Other less common metastatic sites are the lungs, brain, kidney, and bone. In its early stages, pancreatic cancer does not typically result in any characteristic symptoms. In many instances, progressive abdominal pain is the first symptom. Therefore, in most cases, pancreatic cancer is diagnosed in its late stages (locally advanced non-metastatic or metastatic stage of the disease) when surgical resection and possibly curative treatment is not possible. It is generally assumed that only 10% of cases are resectable at presentation, whereas 30-40% of patients are diagnosed at local advanced/unresectable stage and 50-60% present with distant metastases.

About VCN-01

VCN-01 (zabilugene almadenorepvec) is a systemically administered oncolytic adenovirus designed to selectively and aggressively replicate within tumor cells and degrade the tumor stroma that serves as a significant physical and immunosuppressive barrier to cancer treatment. This unique mode-of-action enables VCN-01 to exert multiple antitumor effects by (i) selectively infecting and lysing tumor cells; (ii) enhancing the access and perfusion of co-administered chemotherapy products; and (iii) increasing tumor immunogenicity and exposing the tumor to the patient’s immune system and co-administered immunotherapy products. Systemic administration enables VCN-01 to exert its actions on both the primary tumor and metastases. VCN-01 has been administered to 142 patients to date in clinical trials of different cancers, including pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (in combination with chemotherapy), head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (with an immune checkpoint inhibitor), ovarian cancer (with CAR-T cell therapy), colorectal cancer, and retinoblastoma (by intravitreal injection). More information on these clinical trials is available at Clinicaltrials.gov.

(Press release, Theriva Biologics, APR 17, 2026, View Source [SID1234664514])

On April 17, 2026 Biolojic Design, a biotechnology company that uses AI to transform antibodies into multifunctional, programmable medicines, reported new preclinical data demonstrating the strong anti-tumor properties of its multibody-drug conjugate BD200. The data are being presented at the 2026 American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) (Free AACR Whitepaper) Annual Meeting, being held April 17-22, 2026 in San Diego.

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"We’re excited to share data from the first ever multibody-drug conjugate, which has the potential to transform ADC technology and, as our data suggest, lead to more efficacious and safer treatment," said Yanay Ofran, PhD, CEO and founder of Biolojic Design. "The unique ability of a multibody to adapt to the heterogeneity of tumor antigen expression makes it an ideal base for an ADC, potentially enhancing anti-tumor activity while reducing the amount of drug needed to dose. Combined with the linker/payload we designed, BD200 has a dramatically improved therapeutic index compared to other ADCs. We look forward to initiating our first clinical trial of BD200 later this year."

BD200 is a multibody-drug conjugate, an ADC that is based on a multibody, a new kind of AI-designed antibody that can conditionally bind to multiple targets while maintaining the natural format of a human IgG antibody. Unlike conventional bi-specific antibodies, which have fixed binding profiles, each arm of BD200 can bind to either Trop-2 or Nectin-4. While both may be expressed by a cancer cell, the unique ability of each arm of BD200 to bind to either target helps it overcome target expression heterogeneity while maintaining full avidity on cells. This enables BD200 to deliver more of its cytotoxic payload to the tumor and reduce off tumor and systemic toxicity.

The data being presented at AACR (Free AACR Whitepaper) show:

BD200 demonstrated strong anti-tumor responses across patient derived xenografts of triple negative breast cancer, bladder, cervical and esophageal cancer, as well as gastric cancer in cell line-derived xenograft models
BD200 showed strong activity in tumor models derived from patients that were resistant to other ADCs
In mice bearing human tumors that developed resistance to other ADCs, BD200 led to deep regressions, even in larger tumors (tumor volume >2000mm3)
BD200 demonstrated superior uptake in a Trop-2/Nectin-4 dual-expressing breast cancer cell line when compared to currently marketed antibodies and antibody-drug conjugates that bind to either Trop-2 or Nectin-4 alone
In cell lines resistant to ADCs that bind only to Nectin-4, switching to BD200 restored potent anti-tumor activity

About BD200

BD200 is a potent, first-in-class multibody-drug conjugate that targets two proteins,Trop-2 and Nectin-4, that are co-expressed in various solid tumors, including bladder, breast, lung and head and neck cancers. These proteins drive tumor progression, adhesion, and metastasis. Their expression can be heterogeneous, meaning that patients’ tumors may express these proteins at varying levels. By flexibly targeting both Trop-2 and Nectin-4, BD200 has the potential for enhanced activity, despite the heterogenous expression of the individual targets. BD200 has shown significant anti-tumor activity across multiple human tumor models.

(Press release, Biolojic Design, APR 17, 2026, View Source [SID1234664513])