On March 18, 2026 Freenome, an early cancer detection company developing blood-based screening tests, reported initial development data for its investigational lung cancer screening test. The data demonstrate the potential of a multiomics approach that combines DNA methylation analysis and protein markers to detect lung cancer in high-risk individuals.

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Freenome investigators will present the data at next month’s AACR (Free AACR Whitepaper) Annual Meeting in San Diego. Poster presentation details:

Abstract Number: 1107
Title: Development and performance of a multiomics lung cancer screening blood test
Presenter: Ofer Shapira, Freenome director of computational biology
Session Title: Early Detection Biomarkers 1
Session Date and Time: Sunday, April 19, 2:00 PM – 5:00 PM PDT
For the study, an AI/ML classifier was trained on tissue (n=136) and plasma (n=6,716) samples. The test’s accuracy was evaluated in 673 plasma samples, including 363 lung cancer cases across all stages and 310 cancer-negative controls, from individuals matching the intended screening population (adults aged 50-80 with high-risk smoking history).

In this cohort, Freenome’s proprietary multiomics platform — using base-resolution methylation sequencing of circulating cell-free DNA (cfDNA) and plasma protein immunoassays — achieved adjusted sensitivity* of 90.7% at 50% specificity and 80.4% at 75% specificity for detecting lung cancer. The multiomic approach outperformed a methylation-only version of the test, which showed adjusted sensitivities of 85.8% and 78.2% at the same specificity thresholds.

The multiomics test detected lung cancer across all three subtypes evaluated in this study (adenocarcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma and small-cell lung cancer) and across all disease stages, including an adjusted sensitivity of 77.1% at 50% specificity for Stage I cases.

"Less than 20% of eligible high-risk adults are currently screened for lung cancer, the leading cause of cancer death in the U.S.," said Jimmy Lin, M.D., Ph.D. MHS, chief scientific officer at Freenome. "A blood-based screening test could provide a more accessible option to increase screening participation. In this study, our multiomics approach demonstrated the potential of our test to detect lung cancer across stages and subtypes, and we’re encouraged as we continue to advance to a larger validation study in a previously unseen evaluation cohort."

Freenome is developing a flexible multi-cancer detection platform designed to support a personalized test offering tailored to each individual’s health status, risk factors and screening recommendations. Leveraging a single blood draw and a common assay, this approach utilizes machine and deep learning classifiers to optimize diagnostic accuracy across a diverse range of cancer types.

*Reported sensitivities are adjusted to address differences between the evaluation cohort and literature-reported distributions for stage and histological subtype

(Press release, Freenome, MAR 18, 2026, View Source [SID1234663718])

On March 18, 2026 Sapience Therapeutics, Inc., a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on the discovery and development of peptide therapeutics to address oncogenic and immune dysregulation that drive cancer, reported three poster presentations at the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) (Free AACR Whitepaper) Annual Meeting 2026, taking place April 17-22, 2026, in San Diego, California. Sapience will present clinical and non-clinical results from ST316, a first-in-class antagonist of β-catenin, as well as results from its preclinical Fra1 antagonist peptide (FraAP) program, a first-in-class antagonist of the activator protein 1 (AP-1) complex.

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Poster Presentation Details:

Title: "ST316, a first in class β-catenin antagonist, demonstrates safety and efficacy in metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC)"
Session Title: Phase II and Phase III Clinical Trials
Location: Poster Section 52, Poster Board Number 20
Abstract Number: CT156
Date and Time: Monday, April 20, 2026, 2:00PM – 5:00PM PST

Title: "Antagonism of β-catenin/BCL9 interaction suppresses polymorphonuclear myeloid-derived suppressor cell generation and maintenance"
Session Title: Oncogenic Pathways and Cancer Immunity
Location: Poster Section 7, Poster Board Number 5
Abstract Number: 5562
Date and Time: Tuesday, April 21, 2026, 2:00PM – 5:00PM PST

Title: "Targeted antagonism of the activator protein 1 transcription factor complex results in potent anti-tumor activity in HNSCC models"
Session Title: Oncogenic Transcription Factors and Cancer Programs
Location: Poster Section 24, Poster Board Number 17
Abstract Number: 4767
Date and Time: Tuesday, April 21, 2026, 9:00AM – 12:00PM PST

More information can be found on the AACR (Free AACR Whitepaper) Annual Meeting 2026 website.

About ST316

ST316 is a first-in-class antagonist of the interaction between β-catenin and its co-activator, BCL9, a complex responsible for driving oncogene expression and immune exclusion in multiple cancers where aberrant Wnt/β-catenin pathway signaling is observed. Aberrant activation of the Wnt/β-catenin pathway is a critical driver of tumor progression and immune evasion in tumors including colorectal cancer (CRC). Targeting this pathway is challenging for multiple reasons including its role in normal tissue physiology. BCL9 is a co-activator essential for oncogenic β-catenin activity, but not its physiologic functions, highlighting the β-catenin/BCL9 interaction as a therapeutic target. ST316 was designed to selectively disrupt the β-catenin and BCL9/9L interaction, resulting in disruption of oncogenic Wnt/β-catenin transcriptional activity and potent antitumor activity, with no negative impact on intestinal or bone physiology.

ST316-101 (NCT05848739) is a first-in-human, open-label, Phase 1/2 dose escalation and expansion study designed to determine the safety, tolerability, PK, PD and early efficacy of ST316. The Phase 1 dose escalation portion of the study tested various dose levels of ST316 in patients with selected advanced solid tumors that are known to harbor abnormalities of the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway, including colorectal cancer (CRC). ST316 is currently being evaluated in the Phase 2 portion of the study in CRC patients in combination with relevant standards of care and in multiple lines of treatment. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted Orphan Drug Designation to ST316 for the treatment of familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP).

(Press release, Sapience Therapeutics, MAR 18, 2026, View Source [SID1234663717])

On March 18, 2026 Sichuan Kelun-Biotech Biopharmaceutical Co., Ltd. ("Kelun-Biotech" or the "Company", 6990.HK), reported that the final OS analysis from the pivotal study (OptiTROP-Lung03) of sacituzumab tirumotecan (sac-TMT, also known as SKB264/MK-2870) (佳泰莱), a TROP2 ADC has been selected as a Late-Breaking Abstract (LBA) (Presentation Number: LBA4) at the 2026 European Lung Cancer Congress (ELCC) to be held in Copenhagen, Denmark, from March 25 to 28, 2026 (local time). Professor Yunpeng Yang from the Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center will present the findings to the global research community during a Mini Oral Session. The abstract was published on the ESMO (Free ESMO Whitepaper) Open.

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The OptiTROP-Lung03 study was designed to evaluate the efficacy and safety profile of sac-TMT monotherapy (5 mg/kg every other week) versus docetaxel for the treatment of patients with locally advanced or metastatic EGFR-mutant NSCLC who have previously treated with an EGFR-TKI and platinum-based chemotherapy. Previously reported results presented at the ASCO (Free ASCO Whitepaper) 2025 meeting in 137 randomized participants demonstrated that sac-TMT achieved statistically significant and clinically meaningful improvements in progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) compared to docetaxel——the hazard ratio (HR) for BICR-assessed PFS was 0.30 (95% CI: 0.20–0.46, one-sided p<0.001) and HR for OS was 0.49 (95% CI: 0.27–0.88, one-sided p=0.007)[1]. Based on these positive results, sac-TMT received approval from the National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) for this indication, which has also been included in China’s National Reimbursement Drug List (NRDL).

At the 2026 ELCC, the final OS analysis, along with updated PFS and additional data from the OptiTROP-Lung03 study will be presented. As of December 11, 2025, the median follow-up was 23.8 months. Key highlights are as follows:

In the docetaxel control group, 41.3% of patients crossed over to receive sac-TMT after disease progression.
Considering the impact of OS from crossover treatment in the control group, adjusted and analysed by the pre-specified rank-preserving structural failure time (RPSFT) model, the median OS was 20.0 months in the sac-TMT group vs 11.2 months in the docetaxel group (HR 0.45, 95% CI: 0.28–0.73), with 18-month OS rate of 54.7% vs 9.1%. Without adjustment for subsequent sac-TMT treatment in the control group, median OS was 20.0 months vs 13.5 months (HR 0.63, 95% CI: 0.40–0.98).
Median PFS assessed by investigators (INV) was 7.9 months vs 2.8 months (HR 0.23, 95% CI: 0.15-0.35).
Notably, based on another study, the OptiTROP-Lung04 study, sac-TMT has been approved by the NMPA for the treatment of advanced or metastatic EGFR-mutant NSCLC after progression on EGFR-TKI therapy, with the findings concurrently published in The New England Journal of Medicine[2]. In this study among the EGFR-mutant NSCLC population who have progressed after prior EGFR-TKI and platinum-based chemotherapy, sac-TMT demonstrated a statistically significant and clinically meaningful increase in overall survival，with a median OS of 20 months. The consistent positive findings from two pivotal registrational studies further reinforce sac-TMT’s leading position in the treatment landscape for pre-treated EGFR-mutant NSCLC, offering a more definitive and long-term survival benefit option for patients with advanced lung cancer.

About Sac-TMT

Sac-TMT, a core product of the Company, is a novel human TROP2 ADC in which the Company has proprietary intellectual property rights, targeting advanced solid tumors such as NSCLC, breast cancer (BC), gastric cancer (GC), gynecological tumors, among others. Sac-TMT is developed with a novel linker to conjugate the payload, a belotecan-derivative topoisomerase I inhibitor with a drug-to-antibody-ratio (DAR) of 7.4. Sac-TMT specifically recognizes TROP2 on the surface of tumor cells by recombinant anti-TROP2 humanized monoclonal antibodies, which is then endocytosed by tumor cells and releases the payload KL610023 intracellularly. KL610023, as a topoisomerase I inhibitor, induces DNA damage to tumor cells, which in turn leads to cell-cycle arrest and apoptosis. In addition, it also releases KL610023 in the tumor microenvironment. Given that KL610023 is membrane permeable, it can enable a bystander effect, or in other words kill adjacent tumor cells.

In May 2022, the Company licensed the exclusive rights to MSD (the tradename of Merck & Co., Inc, Rahway, NJ, USA) to develop, use, manufacture and commercialize sac-TMT in all territories outside of Greater China (which includes Mainland China, Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan).

To date, four indications for sac-TMT have been approved and marketed in China for: EGFR mutant-positive locally advanced or metastatic non-squamous NSCLC following progression on EGFR-TKI therapy and platinum-based chemotherapy; unresectable locally advanced or metastatic TNBC who have received at least two prior systemic therapies (at least one of them for advanced or metastatic setting); EGFR mutant-positive locally advanced or metastatic non-squamous NSCLC who progressed after treatment with EGFR-TKI therapy; unresectable or metastatic HR+/HER2- (IHC 0, IHC 1+ or IHC 2+/ISH-) BC who have received prior ET and at least one line of chemotherapy in advanced setting. The first two indications listed above have been included in China’s National Reimbursement Drug List (NRDL). This inclusion is expected to bring clinical benefits to a greater number of patients with BC and NSCLC. Additionally, sac-TMT has been granted six Breakthrough Therapy Designations (BTDs) by the NMPA.

Sac-TMT is the world’s first TROP2 ADC drug approved for marketing in lung cancer. As of today, Kelun-Biotech has initiated 9 registrational clinical studies in China. MSD is evaluating 17 ongoing Phase III global clinical studies of sac-TMT as a monotherapy or with pembrolizumab or other anti-cancer agents for several types of cancer. These studies are sponsored and led by MSD.

(Press release, Kelun, MAR 18, 2026, View Source [SID1234663716])

On March 18, 2026 SystImmune, Inc. (SystImmune), a clinical-stage biotechnology company, reported an abstract for iza-bren (izalontamab brengitecan), a potentially first-in-class EGFRxHER3 bispecific antibody drug conjugate (ADC), will be presented at the European Lung Cancer Congress (ELCC 2026) taking place March 25 – 28 in Copenhagen, Denmark. Iza-bren is jointly developed by SystImmune and Bristol Myers Squibb under a collaboration and exclusive license agreement in territories outside of China.

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The safety and efficacy results of iza-bren in combination with serplulimab in treatment-naive patients with Extensive Stage Small Cell Lung Cancer (ES-SCLC) will be presented at ELCC. The data highlight the continued progress of iza-bren clinical development in China and build upon the previously reported clinical activity in lung, breast, and bladder cancer patients at ASCO (Free ASCO Whitepaper), ESMO (Free ESMO Whitepaper), WCLC, and SABCS in 2023, 2024 and 2025.

"The data being presented at ELCC highlight the continued clinical progress of iza-bren and its potential as a novel treatment approach for patients with difficult-to-treat lung cancers," said Jonathan Cheng, M.D., Chief Medical Officer of SystImmune. "We are encouraged by the safety and efficacy signals observed with iza-bren in combination with serplulimab in treatment-naïve patients with extensive-stage small cell lung cancer. These findings support further exploration of iza-bren–based combinations in earlier lines of therapy as we work to expand therapeutic options for patients with aggressive lung malignancies."

Details of the presentation at ELCC are below:‍‍

Phase II Study of iza-bren (BL-B01D1) in Combination with Serplulimab in Patients with Small Cell Lung Cancer (SCLC)
Session Title: Proffered Paper Session 1
Presentation: 408O
Speaker: Fei Zhou (Shanghai, China)
Session Date & Time: Wednesday, March 25th, 2026, 2:45 PM-4:15 PM CET

About iza-bren
SystImmune, in collaboration with BMS outside of China, is developing iza-bren (BL-B01D1), a bispecific antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) that targets both EGFR and HER3, which are highly expressed in various epithelial cancers and are known to be associated with cancer cell proliferation and survival. Iza-bren’s dual mechanism of action blocks EGFR and HER3 signals to cancer cells, reducing proliferation and survival signals. In addition, upon antibody mediated internalization, iza-bren’s therapeutic novel Topo1i payload is released causing cytotoxic stress that leads to cancer cell death.

(Press release, SystImmune, MAR 18, 2026, View Source [SID1234663715])

On March 18, 2026 IDEAYA Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ: IDYA), a leading precision medicine oncology company, reported the publication of abstracts for three poster presentations at the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) (Free AACR Whitepaper) Annual Meeting, taking place April 17-22 in San Diego, California. The presentations will highlight preclinical data from three potential first-in-class programs from IDEAYA’s clinical stage pipeline: IDE034, a PTK7/B7H3 bi-specific topoisomerase-1 (TOP1) antibody-drug conjugate (ADC); IDE574, a potent dual inhibitor of the lysine acetyltransferase (KAT) 6 and 7; and IDE892, an MTA-cooperative inhibitor of PRMT5. The company is currently conducting Phase 1 clinical studies to evaluate safety, tolerability, PK and efficacy of these three programs across a broad range of large solid tumor indications, including lung, colorectal, pancreatic, breast, and prostate cancer.

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"We are excited for the opportunity to showcase data from our earlier stage clinical pipeline at this year’s AACR (Free AACR Whitepaper). These programs align closely with our clinical focus within TOP1 ADCs and DNA damage repair (DDR) mechanisms, synthetic lethality and modulation of epigenetic pathways to overcome resistance mechanisms in cancer. Our goal is to identify first-in-class and best-in-class product profiles to deliver robust monotherapy efficacy and rational combinations that have the potential to drive deeper, more durable responses for patients living with cancer," said Michael White, Ph.D., Chief Scientific Officer of IDEAYA Biosciences.

Details of the poster presentations are as follows:

Author: Munoz Delgado, D. et al.
Title: IDE034, A bispecific antibody-drug conjugate co-targeting PTK7 and B7-H3, exhibits avidity-driven selectivity and enhanced antitumor activity versus mono-specific ADCs
Poster Number: 232
Session Title: DNA Damage and Repair 1

Date and Time: Sunday, April 19, 2026 at 2:00pm-5:00pm PDT

Author: Gupta, M. et al.
Title: The KAT6/7 inhibitor IDE574 disrupts tumor lineage identity and drug tolerance to deliver robust antitumor activity in biomarker selected indications
Poster Number: 4483
Session Title: Epigenetic Modulators 1

Date and Time: Tuesday, April 21, 2026 at 9:00am-12:00pm PDT

Author: Rao, A. et al.
Title: IDE892 is a highly potent and selective PRMT5 inhibitor, with MTA-positive and SAM-negative cooperativity, optimized for development in MTAP-del cancers in combination with the allosteric MAT2A inhibitor IDE397
Poster Number: 4505
Session Title: Epigenetic Modulators 1

Date and Time: Tuesday, April 21, 2026 at 9:00am-12:00pm PDT

The poster presentations will be made available on IDEAYA’s corporate website following the meeting: View Source

(Press release, Ideaya Biosciences, MAR 18, 2026, View Source [SID1234663714])