On January 7, 2026 UP Oncolytics, a biotech company in Rosalind Franklin University’s Helix 51 biomedical incubator, reported that it was awarded an Illinois Innovation Voucher grant for $75,000 for its collaboration with Rosalind Franklin University (RFU). UP Oncolytics is developing a novel treatment for Glioblastoma Multiforme (GBM), the most aggressive form of malignant brain cancer.

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GBM is the leading cause of cancer-related deaths among men under 40 in the United States. Approximately 13,000 new cases of GBM are diagnosed annually. The median survival time for patients is about 14 months, and the five-year survival rate remains at only 7.1%. No new therapeutic agents have received approval in the U.S. in the past 20 years.

Established by the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO) and administered by the Illinois Science & Technology Coalition (ISTC) to support collaborations between Illinois universities and small businesses, the grant will help UP Oncolytics complete Investigational New Drug (IND) experiments at RFU’s research labs for its initial candidate to treat GBM.

"We are grateful to ISTC and Illinois DCEO for this recognition and award, which will provide vital support to the development of a new therapy for this devastating form of brain cancer," said UP Oncolytics CEO Richard Rovin, MD, who is a neurosurgeon. "I am hopeful there will be an effective treatment in the near future for the patients afflicted by this disease."

"ISTC and Illinois DCEO are providing important support to an exciting early-stage cancer biotech company, which promises new therapeutic treatment options," said Joseph DiMario, PhD, RFU’s executive vice president for research. "We are proud to be assisting UP Oncolytics in the development of this novel therapy for this terrible fatal disease."

UP Oncolytics completed an exclusive license agreement for this novel therapy based on an oncolytic virus from Advocate Health in 2025. It was awarded an NIH SBIR Fast Track grant for this technology and FDA Orphan Drug designation for malignant gliomas, a broader group of brain cancers including GBM. The company expanded its oncology expertise with new board members Dr. Gary Gordon, a Johns Hopkins-trained oncologist and former vice president of clinical oncology at AbbVie, and Michael Rosen, a former oncology biotech CEO and executive with Pfizer, Bristol-Myers Squibb and Searle.

(Press release, UP Oncolytics, JAN 7, 2026, View Source [SID1234661820])

On January 7, 2026 Terns Pharmaceuticals, Inc. ("Terns" or the "Company") (Nasdaq: TERN), a clinical-stage oncology company, reported that management will provide an update on 2026 priorities and program milestones during the Company’s presentation at the 44th Annual J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference on January 12th, 2026 at 3:45pm in San Francisco, CA.

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"Last year was transformative for Terns as we completed our transition to an oncology company anchored by our allosteric BCR-ABL inhibitor, TERN-701, for CML. Following compelling TERN-701 data at ASH (Free ASH Whitepaper) in December, and our subsequent capital raise, we are in a strong position to advance TERN-701 towards pivotal trial initiation. Based on accelerating momentum in our CARDINAL trial, our goal for pivotal trials is to enroll patients more quickly than historical precedents in CML and to generate data that further strengthen the position of TERN-701 as a potential best-in-disease therapy across all lines of CML treatment," said Amy Burroughs, chief executive officer of Terns. "We believe that reaffirming clinical differentiation and advancing to product launch rapidly will be key factors to maximize the therapeutic and commercial potential of TERN-701," added Ms. Burroughs.

Anticipated 2026 Priorities and Key Milestones

TERN-701: Oral, allosteric BCR-ABL tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) for chronic myeloid leukemia (CML)

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Anticipated 2026 milestones for TERN-701 include:

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Selection of pivotal dose in mid-2026

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End of Phase 2 regulatory interaction with U.S. FDA in mid-2026

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Updated and expanded CARDINAL data by second half of 2026

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Initiation of first pivotal trial (2L+ population) in late 2026 / early 2027

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Preliminary study design anticipates evaluation of TERN-701 vs control arm of investigator’s choice 2 nd generation TKI (dasatinib, nilotinib, bosutinib) with major molecular response (MMR) at six months as the primary endpoint

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New cohort added to the ongoing CARDINAL Phase 1/2 study to evaluate TERN-701 500mg QD in approximately 20 patients with BCR-ABL resistance mutations including T315I, M244V, F359I/C/V and others

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At the 67th ASH (Free ASH Whitepaper) Annual Meeting in December 2025, Elias Jabbour, MD, Professor, Department of Leukemia, Division of Cancer Medicine, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, presented unprecedented safety and efficacy data from the CARDINAL trial

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CARDINAL enrolled a predominantly 3L+ patient population with 38% of patients having received prior asciminib of whom 75% discontinued due to lack of efficacy

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TERN-701 showed an encouraging safety profile (N=63)

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87% (55/63) of patients remained on treatment as of the data cutoff

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No dose-limiting toxicities were observed in dose escalation, and a maximum tolerated dose was not reached

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The majority of treatment-emergent adverse events (TEAEs) were low grade with no apparent dose relationship

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Grade 3 or higher TEAEs were all less than 10%, most commonly neutropenia (8%) and thrombocytopenia (8%)

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Unprecedented efficacy with MMR achievement rate by 24 weeks of 75% (18/24) in evaluable patients enrolled at the recommended phase 2 dose range of >320mg QD, trending 2-3X higher than asciminib in Phase 1 and Phase 3 studies evaluating a 3L+ patient population

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Deep molecular response (DMR) achievement rate by 24 weeks of 36% (10/28)

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Encouraging MMR rates in patients with prior asciminib (n=10)

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Overall MMR rate of 60% (6/10), with 43% (3/7) achieving MMR and 100% (3/3) maintaining MMR

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Enrollment has accelerated with 85+ patients enrolled as of December 8, 2025

Other Pipeline Programs

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Discovery efforts are underway on undisclosed targets for oncology indications

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Terns is seeking a strategic partner to advance the TERN-501 and TERN-801 legacy metabolic programs

Corporate Updates

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In December 2025, Terns completed an upsized public offering of 18,687,500 shares of its common stock, generating gross proceeds of approximately $747.5 million before deducting underwriting discounts and commissions and other offering expenses

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Unaudited cash, cash equivalents and marketable securities for the year ended December 31, 2025, of approximately $1.0 billion expected to provide cash runway into 2031, including the first potential approval and launch of TERN-701

A live webcast of the Company’s J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference presentation will be available on the investor relations page of Terns’ website at View Source A replay of the webcast will be archived on Terns’ website for at least 30 days following the presentation.

(Press release, Terns Pharmaceuticals, JAN 7, 2026, View Source [SID1234661903])

On January 7, 2026 Oncolytics Biotech Inc. (Nasdaq: ONCY) ("Oncolytics" or the "Company"), a clinical-stage immunotherapy company developing pelareorep, reported the expansion of its gastrointestinal ("GI") Tumor Scientific Advisory Board ("SAB") with the appointment of Dr. Eileen O’Reilly, Dr. Neil Segal, and Dr. Van Morris, three globally recognized experts in gastrointestinal oncology. The GI SAB was recently established to support Oncolytics’ growing portfolio of clinical programs in pancreatic, colorectal, and anal cancers and to guide the Company’s strategy as it advances pelareorep as a platform immunotherapy across GI tumors.

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Dr. Eileen O’Reilly is the Winthrop Rockefeller Endowed Chair of Medical Oncology at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center ("MSK") and an internationally recognized leader in pancreatic cancer research and treatment.

"The data emerging with pelareorep across gastrointestinal cancers add to the growing evidence of immunotherapy’s potential in these diseases," said Dr. O’Reilly. "The opportunity to help guide a program that has demonstrated durable responses and encouraging survival signals across multiple tumor types is an important one."

Dr. Neil Segal is the Research Director of the Division of Gastrointestinal Oncology at MSK and an expert in translational oncology and biomarker-driven development.

"Pelareorep’s immunomodulatory potential across solid tumors warrants further evaluation as a potential therapeutic approach," said Dr. Segal. "I look forward to contributing scientific guidance as Oncolytics advances its clinical development program and explores collaborative opportunities."

Dr. Van Morris is an Associate Professor in the Department of Gastrointestinal Medical Oncology at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, TX, where he also serves as the Section Chief for Colorectal Cancer.

"I have a strong belief in the potential of immunotherapies like pelareorep to help patients in the gastrointestinal cancer setting," said Dr. Morris. "This drug candidate has shown very promising findings in early trials for patients with colorectal and anal cancers, which should be further studied as soon as possible. I look forward to shepherding pelareorep through these next steps of its development."

Jared Kelly, Chief Executive Officer of Oncolytics Biotech, commented: "We’re thrilled to welcome Drs. O’Reilly, Segal, and Morris to our GI SAB. Each brings deep clinical and strategic expertise that will be instrumental as we advance pelareorep through late-stage development. Our focus remains on moving forward with studies that aim to deliver new treatments for patients with difficult GI tumors—programs with total addressable markets so significant that large pharma should take notice. Pelareorep represents a rare example of a true immunotherapy platform with broad applicability across gastrointestinal cancers, and we are strategically positioned to maximize its impact."

With the addition of these distinguished members, Oncolytics’ GI SAB now includes six global experts representing leading academic and clinical institutions across North America and Europe. The inaugural three members include Sanjay Goel, M.D., M.S., FASCO, Professor of Medicine and Director of the Phase I Program at Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey; Deva Mahalingam, M.D., Ph.D., Professor of Medicine, GI oncologist and Director of the Developmental Therapeutics Program, Lurie Cancer Center at Northwestern University; and Dirk Arnold, M.D., Ph.D., FESMO, Principal Investigator of the GOBLET study, Professor of Medicine, and Director of Asklepios Tumorzentrum Hamburg, Germany. The GI SAB will continue to provide guidance on study design, clinical strategy, and translational initiatives as the Company advances its pancreatic, anal, and colorectal cancer programs toward registration-enabling trials.

Review of clinical data for pelareorep in GI cancers

In first-line pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma, an aggregated analysis of pelareorep’s efficacy across multiple clinical studies and over 100 patients showed the two-year overall survival ("OS") rate was ~22.0% for pelareorep-based treatment regimens compared to a historical benchmark of ~9.0% (link to the PR).

The current approved standard of care for second-line or later squamous cell anal carcinoma patients is a checkpoint inhibitor monotherapy that recorded an objective response rate ("ORR") of 13.8%, whereas the combination of pelareorep and a checkpoint inhibitor generated an ORR of 30% (link to the PR).

Second-line KRAS-mutant metastatic colorectal patients who received pelareorep and FOLFIRI + bevacizumab recorded 16.6 months progression-free survival compared to 5.7 months for the historical control of FOLFIRI + bevacizumab, and 27.0 months compared to 11.2 months for OS (link to the PR). Further analysis of data from this study resulted in an ORR of 33% for patients receiving the pelareorep-based combination regimen compared to 6-11% for the historical benchmark (link to the PR).

Oncolytics is planning pivotal studies in all three of these indications and will continue to engage the U.S. Food and Drug Administration ("FDA") where needed while simultaneously moving each indication forward.

(Press release, Oncolytics Biotech, JAN 7, 2026, View Source [SID1234661806])

On January 7, 2026 Arbele, a biotechnology company focused on developing innovative targeted cancer therapies, reported that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted Orphan Drug Designation (ODD) to ARB1002, its investigational antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) for the treatment of pancreatic cancer.

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ARB1002 is composed of an anti-CDH17 monoclonal antibody chemically linked to a potent cytotoxic agent. The ADC is designed to selectively bind CDH17, a cell-surface adhesion molecule overexpressed in pancreatic cancer, enabling targeted delivery of the cytotoxic payload to tumor cells while limiting off-target exposure.

"Orphan Drug Designation for ARB1002 marks a significant regulatory milestone for Arbele and reflects the critical need for new treatment options for patients with pancreatic cancer," said Dr Linda Wu, Chief Development Officer of Arbele. "This designation reinforces our confidence in the therapeutic potential of ARB1002 and supports its continued advancement through clinical development."

Pancreatic cancer is among the deadliest solid tumors, with limited effective therapies and poor long-term survival outcomes. The FDA’s Orphan Drug Designation program is intended to incentivize the development of therapies for rare diseases affecting fewer than 200,000 patients in the United States, offering benefits that may include tax credits for qualified clinical development expenses, exemption from certain FDA user fees, and seven years of market exclusivity following regulatory approval.

ARB1002 is planned to enter a Phase 1 clinical trial this year, with Arbele completing IND-enabling studies to support its clinical evaluation in pancreatic cancer.

"This designation highlights CDH17 as a promising target in pancreatic cancer and validates Arbele’s ADC development strategy," added Dr Tony Wong, Chief Technology Officer. "We look forward to continued engagement with the FDA as we progress ARB1002."

(Press release, ARBELE, JAN 7, 2026, View Source [SID1234661821])

On January 7, 2026 Ottimo Pharma ("Ottimo"), an innovative, clinical-stage biotech company developing one-of-a-kind PD-1/VEGFR2 dual-paratopic antibodies to extend the lives of patients living with cancer, reported the US Food and Drug Administration clearance of the investigational new drug (IND) application for its lead candidate OTP-01. The first patient has been dosed and recruitment is well underway. All manufacturing of OTP-01 is occurring solely in the US.

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"I am proud of our Ottimo team for their remarkable speed in bringing OTP-01 into the clinic since coming out of stealth," said David Epstein, Chair and Chief Executive Officer of Ottimo Pharma. "We are developing this unique, first-in-class antibody to be the ideal backbone therapy to combine with Antibody Drug Conjugates or chemotherapy, with the aim of creating a new standard of care across a wide range of solid tumors."

The broad Phase I/IIA, open-label, multicenter study will evaluate the safety, tolerability, pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics, and early anti-tumor activity of OTP-01. The study is enrolling patients in the US and Australia and will expand to approximately 20 centers globally.

"Our aim is to fully assess the potential of this distinctive antibody by generating comprehensive clinical and translational data to inform both dose selection and combination strategies, and to ​set the stage for broad development across multiple tumor types," said Dr. Mehdi Shahidi, Head of Development and Chief Medical Officer of Ottimo.

About OTP-01
OTP-01 is a first-in-class, investigational Fc-null, IgG1 monoclonal antibody featuring a unique dual-paratopic design that enables simultaneous engagement of the PD-1 immune checkpoint and the VEGFR-2 angiogenic pathway. As a single agent, OTP-01 maintains conventional IgG architecture, supporting optimal manufacturability and stability. Preclinical data supports the potential of OTP-01 to provide potent PD-1 inhibition combined with uniquely engineered allosteric VEGFR2 receptor inhibition (targeting ligands A/C/D) and modulates multiple immune subsets while optimally promoting tumor vascular normalization. This integrated dual-target engagement is designed to drive tumor microenvironment-biased distribution and enhance intratumoral immune activation. In addition, pre-clinical studies have demonstrated significantly improved anti-tumor efficacy and intratumoral CD8+ T cell infiltration compared to PD-1 inhibition alone. As a one-of-a-kind, next-generation investigative therapy for solid tumors, OTP-01 aims to offer a wider therapeutic window for patients, with the potential to improve outcomes across multiple indications. The antibody is produced with high manufacturing efficiency in the U.S.

(Press release, Ottimo Pharma, JAN 7, 2026, View Source [SID1234661807])