On November 9, 2026 AbelZeta Inc. ("AbelZeta" or the "Company"), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery and development of innovative and proprietary cell-based therapeutic products, reported updated clinical results from the first-in-human study investigating C-CAR031 (now known as AZD7003), a novel glypican-3 (GPC3)-targeted armored CAR-T in advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), presented at the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) (Free ESMO Whitepaper) Congress 2026 in Madrid, Spain.

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The presentation reported an encouraging survival signal and antitumor activity in 36 heavily pretreated patients with advanced HCC, who had received a median of four prior lines of systemic therapy. As of the August 15, 2026 data cutoff date, median follow-up was 14.9 months.

Presentation Details

Abstract: 1680RO
Title: Phase I study of C-CAR031 (AZD7003), a GPC3-targeted TGFβRIIDN armored autologous CAR-T, in advanced hepatocellular carcinoma: Updated results
Session: Rapid Oral Presentation – Cell Therapy
Date: October 26, 2026
Key Clinical Results

Baseline Characteristics: The study enrolled advanced HCC patients with the majority (94.4%) of patients at Barcelona Clinic Liver Cancer (BCLC) Stage C, with extrahepatic lesions (83.3%). Patients were heavily pre-treated with a median of 4 lines of systemic therapies, with the majority (91.7%) of patients having received both immunotherapy and VEGF(R) inhibitors before enrollment.
Safety: Most patients experienced mild (Grade 1 or 2) cytokine release syndrome (CRS), with two patients (5.6%) at the highest dose level experiencing Grade 3 CRS. No dose-limiting toxicities (DLTs), immune effector cell-associated neurotoxicity syndrome (ICANS), or immune effector cell-associated hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis-like syndrome (IEC-HS) were observed. Two patients (5.6%) at the highest dose level had interstitial lung disease (ILD).
Clinical activities: The confirmed overall response rate was 44.4% and the disease control rate (DCR) was 91.7% across all 4 dose levels. At the recommended phase 2 dose (RP2D) of 2.5×10^6 cells/kg, the DCR was 100% with a 12-month overall survival rate of 75.6%. Previously published data reported that tumor regression was observed in 32/36 patients (88.9%) across both intrahepatic and extrahepatic lesions.
"These updated results provide further encouraging clinical evidence of the potential of C-CAR031/AZD7003 to address significant unmet medical needs in advanced hepatocellular carcinoma, particularly among patients who have exhausted multiple lines of treatment," said Tony (Bizuo) Liu, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of AbelZeta. "We are proud of the important role AbelZeta has played in advancing this program, combining AstraZeneca’s innovative CAR-T design and armoring technology with our extensive cell therapy engineering, manufacturing, and clinical development capabilities. We are pleased to see the continued clinical progress of this program under AstraZeneca’s global leadership and look forward to its further development for patients with HCC."

C-CAR031/AZD7003 is an autologous GPC3-targeting CAR-T therapy designed by AstraZeneca using its dominant-negative transforming growth factor-beta receptor II (dnTGFβRII) armoring platform, that is designed to overcome immunosuppression within the solid tumor microenvironment. The first-in-human clinical study was conducted by The First Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, led by Professor Tingbo Liang and Dr. Qi Zhang.

In January 2026, AbelZeta announced an agreement under which AstraZeneca acquired AbelZeta’s remaining development and commercialization rights to C-CAR031 in China. AstraZeneca now holds sole worldwide rights to develop, manufacture, and commercialize the investigational therapy, while AbelZeta remains eligible to receive development, regulatory, and commercial milestone payments, as well as royalties under the applicable agreements.

(Press release, AbelZeta, NOV 9, 2026, View Source [SID1234674494])