On April 20, 2026 Akeso, Inc. (9926.HK) ("Akeso" or the "Company") reported that positive Phase II results from the COMPASSION-26 study evaluating cadonilimab, its first-in-class PD-1/CTLA-4 bispecific antibody, in combination with chemotherapy as first-line treatment for advanced pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC), were presented at the 2026 American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) (Free AACR Whitepaper) Annual Meeting.
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As of the October 20, 2025 data cutoff, with a median follow-up of more than two years, the cadonilimab plus chemotherapy combination continued to deliver robust and durable survival benefits. Results were particularly strong in patients with locally advanced disease, where the median PFS reached 11.1 months and the median OS exceeded 23 months. Landmark survival rates in this group included a 12-month OS rate of 91.7% and a 24-month OS rate of 44.1%.
The cadonilimab regimen also provided strong tumor control across the overall study population. Of the patients evaluable for efficacy (95% had at least one post-baseline tumor assessment), the objective response rate (ORR) was 33.9% and the disease control rate (DCR) reached 96.4%. Response rates were similar between patients with locally advanced and metastatic disease, indicating consistent benefit across both subgroups.
No new safety signals were identified, and the overall safety profile of the cadonilimab combination remained favorable and manageable.
Cadonilimab is the world’s first approved bispecific antibody for cancer immunotherapy, having received marketing approval in 2022. In extensive real-world clinical practice and multiple Phase III studies, it has demonstrated clinically meaningful benefit across all patient populations regardless of PD-L1 expression status, addressing a significant unmet medical need and earning broad recognition from physicians and patients.
As a cornerstone therapy in the era of tumor immunotherapy 2.0, cadonilimab not only offers the significant advantage of clinical benefit across broad patient populations, but has also demonstrated important breakthrough potential in difficult-to-treat settings, including immunotherapy-refractory disease and immunologically "cold" tumors. Akeso is fully leveraging its global leadership in bispecific antibody development for oncology to continue addressing major unmet clinical needs and advancing transformative treatment options for patients with challenging cancers.
(Press release, Akeso Biopharma, APR 20, 2026, View Source [SID1234664559])