On January 13, 2026 Rakuten Medical, Inc. and LOTTE Biologics reported that they have signed a biopharmaceutical contract manufacturing agreement during the J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference in San Francisco to strengthen Rakuten Medical’s production capabilities for its innovative oncology therapy, Alluminox platform-based photoimmunotherapy.

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Under the agreement, LOTTE Biologics will provide advanced manufacturing services for monoclonal antibody intermediates and their conjugates, supporting Rakuten Medical’s global clinical development and future commercialization.

Rakuten Medical’s proprietary photoimmunotherapy technology is designed to selectively target cells in solid tumors, by combining cell-targeting moieties, such as antibodies, with light-activatable agents, enabling focal and selective destruction of solid tumor cells upon light exposure.

In Japan, the therapy is approved for recurrent head and neck cancer, and its footprint has expanded steadily, through broader site adoption and sustained year–over–year growth in treatment numbers. In parallel, a global Phase 3 clinical trial is underway in the United States, Taiwan region and Japan, with plans to start treatment in Ukraine and Poland soon.

Rakuten Medical also plans to initiate a Phase 1 clinical trial in Japan for other solid tumors beyond head and neck cancer this year. These clinical and commercial dynamics are driving increased demand for Rakuten Medical’s bioconjugates.

LOTTE Biologics has been expanding its capabilities as a global contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO), particularly in the field of monoclonal and multispecific antibodies, antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs), and advanced bioconjugation services. LOTTE Biologics will support the production of monoclonal antibody intermediates and their conjugates for Rakuten Medical’s programs, through its specialized ADC manufacturing facility at the Syracuse Bio Campus in New York. The facility is equipped with dedicated ADC production capabilities and advanced bioconjugation technologies, enabling the company to deliver high-quality manufacturing services while meeting global regulatory requirements and ensuring stable supply for customers worldwide.

(Press release, Rakuten Medical, JAN 13, 2026, View Source [SID1234662023])

On January 13, 2026 Immunofoco, a clinical-stage biotechnology company advancing innovative CAR-T cell therapies for solid tumors, reported clinical data from its Phase I/IIa study of IMC002, a VHH-based anti-CLDN18.2 CAR-T therapy, in patients with advanced gastric cancer and gastroesophageal junction cancer (GC/GEJ). The data were presented as a poster (Abstract No. 398) at the 2026 ASCO (Free ASCO Whitepaper) Gastrointestinal Cancers Symposium (ASCO GI 2026).

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The study is a multicenter, open-label, dose-escalation Phase I/IIa trial designed to evaluate the safety, tolerability, and preliminary efficacy of IMC002 in patients with CLDN18.2-positive, locally advanced or metastatic GC/GEJ who had failed at least two prior lines of systemic therapy. The results presented at ASCO (Free ASCO Whitepaper) GI 2026 focus on the GC/GEJ cohort.

As of the data cutoff on August 8, 2025, 16 patients had received a single infusion of IMC002 and were included in the safety analysis, with 15 patients evaluable for efficacy. IMC002 demonstrated a favorable and manageable safety profile, with no dose-limiting toxicities observed during the dose-escalation phase. Cytokine release syndrome (CRS) occurred in all patients but was limited to Grade 1 or 2, and no Grade ≥3 CRS, ICANS, or treatment-related deaths were reported.

In evaluable patients, IMC002 achieved an objective response rate (ORR) of 66.7% (10/15). Survival data were immature at the time of analysis, with a median progression-free survival (mPFS) of 7.0 months (95% CI: 3.9, NA) and a median overall survival (OS) of 10.3 months (95% CI: 6.1, NA).

Notably, one patient in the 2.5×10⁸ CAR-T cell dose cohort achieved a complete response (CR) and has remained tumor-free for 60 weeks, demonstrating antitumor activity following IMC002 treatment in a heavily pretreated setting.

Further analyses indicated that IMC002 provided clinically meaningful PFS benefits in third-line and later-line GC/GEJ patients, comparing favorably with historical outcomes reported for this population. Together with its well-tolerated safety profile, these findings support the continued clinical development of IMC002 and its potential evaluation in earlier-line treatment settings.

"IMC002 demonstrated a controllable safety profile and encouraging antitumor activity in patients with advanced gastric and gastroesophageal junction cancers, including those who had failed multiple prior lines of therapy," said Professor Jianming Xu, corresponding author of the study and Professor at the First Medical Center of the Chinese PLA General Hospital. "Of particular clinical significance, one patient achieved a complete response lasting for more than one year. These findings provide important clinical evidence supporting the application of CLDN18.2-targeted CAR-T therapy in solid tumors, and the favorable safety profile also opens the possibility for future exploration in earlier-line settings and strategies aimed at long-term clinical benefit."

IMC002 is a novel CLDN18.2-targeted CAR-T cell therapy incorporating a highly specific VHH domain, designed to enhance tumor targeting while maintaining a favorable safety profile in solid tumors. Based on the encouraging results from this Phase I/IIa study, a Phase III randomized controlled trial of IMC002 in late-line GC/GEJ patients has been initiated.

The presentation at ASCO (Free ASCO Whitepaper) GI 2026 highlights Immunofoco’s continued progress in advancing CAR-T cell therapies for solid tumors and underscores the therapeutic potential of CLDN18.2-targeted approaches in addressing significant unmet medical needs in advanced gastrointestinal cancers.

(Press release, Immunofoco, JAN 13, 2026, View Source;highlighting-a-durable-complete-response-beyond-one-year-and-a-66-7-orr-in-advanced-gcgej-302659498.html [SID1234661990])

On January 13, 2026 Applied Cells Inc. reported a strategic collaboration framework with Immuneel Therapeutics Private Limited to jointly evaluate the application of Applied Cells’ MARS Atlas platform and GoFast CAR-T workflow for future CAR-T therapy development and manufacturing.

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Under this collaboration, the two companies will work together to integrate the MARS Atlas platform and GoFast workflow into selected Immuneel CAR-T programs. The shared objective is to significantly improve the affordability and accessibility of CAR-T therapies, beginning in India, with the potential for broader global adoption.

A key focus of the collaboration is achieving manufacturing costs that enable truly affordable CAR-T therapy for the majority of eligible patients in India, while maintaining therapeutic efficacy comparable to currently approved CAR-T treatments. ‘We are thrilled to partner with Immuneel, a pioneer in bringing cutting‑edge cell therapies to India,’ said Yuchen Zhou, CEO of Applied Cells. ‘The combination of MARS Atlas and the GoFast workflow with Immuneel’s clinical and regulatory capabilities has the potential to transform the CAR‑T landscape by making these life‑saving treatments accessible to millions who currently cannot afford them.’

‘At Immuneel, our mission is to make advanced cell therapies accessible and affordable for patients who need them the most,’ said Amit Mookim, CEO of Immuneel Therapeutics. ‘This collaboration represents an important step in evaluating innovative technologies that could strengthen our manufacturing capabilities and support development of scalable, cost‑effective CAR‑T solutions. We look forward to jointly exploring how platforms like MARS Atlas and the GoFast workflow could contribute to expanding access to high‑quality cell therapies in India and beyond.’

Both companies have commenced collaborative activities and will share updates as the programs progress.

(Press release, Applied Cells, JAN 13, 2026, https://appliedcells.com/immuneel-cart-collaboration/ [SID1234662008])

On January 13, 2026 Akeso, Inc. (9926.HK) reported the presentation of a real-world study at the 2026 American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) (Free ASCO Whitepaper) Gastrointestinal Cancers Symposium (ASCO GI), comparing cadonilimab plus chemotherapy against a PD-1 inhibitor plus chemotherapy for the first-line (1L) treatment for advanced gastric (G) or gastroesophageal junction (GEJ) cancer with PD-L1 CPS <5 (a propensity-matched, retrospective cohort study).

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The study results showed that the cadonilimab regimen, compared to the PD-1 monoclonal antibody regimen, significantly prolonged patients’ overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS). Both OS (HR=0.49, P=0.025) and PFS (HR=0.43, P=0.006) demonstrated statistically significant improvements. The full study has been accepted for publication in the Journal of Gastrointestinal Oncology.

These real-world findings are highly consistent with the "all-comer benefit" profile previously observed for cadonilimab in the Phase III registrational trial COMPASSION-15. This real-world, head-to-head comparison further underscores cadonilimab’s potential to elevate the standard of cancer immunotherapy and address clinical challenges unresolved by single-target PD-1 inhibitors. Based on the data from the pivotal Phase III COMPASSION-15 study, cadonilimab received approval in China in September 2024 for the first-line treatment of advanced gastric cancer across all patient subgroups and this indication was added to cadonilimab’s list of covered indication under National Reimbursement Drug List (NRDL), effective 2026.

Anti-PD-1 antibodies combined with chemotherapy is the international standard of care for advanced gastric cancer. However, its efficacy is significantly limited in patients with PD-L1-low (CPS < 5) or negative (CPS < 1) expression, where these patients constitute nearly half of all advanced gastric cancer cases. As a result, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) restricted all approved first-line PD-1 inhibitors for advanced gastric cancer to only PD-L1-positive patients in 2024. This aligns with recommendations from leading guidelines, such as those of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) and the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) (Free ESMO Whitepaper), which prioritize PD-1-based regimens for patients with PD-L1 CPS ≥5. Consequently, PD-L1-low or -negative advanced gastric cancer remains a major unmet clinical need globally due to thelack of effective immunotherapy options. A recent real-world study provides new evidence addressing this challenge.

In this retrospective analysis, patients with PD-L1-low (CPS < 5) advanced G/GEJ cancer received first-line therapy with either cadonilimab plus chemotherapy or a PD-1 inhibitor plus chemotherapy. With a median follow-up of 11.0 months as of February 28, 2025, the results showed that the cadonilimab-based regimen achieved statistically significant and clinically meaningful improvements in both PFS and OS compared to the PD-1 inhibitor-based regimen.

Some Key Findings from the Study published at GI-ASCO:

Significant PFS and OS Improvement: Among PD-L1-low patients, the cadonilimab group achieved a median OS of 14.3 months, significantly longer than the 10.3 months observed in the PD-1 inhibitor group (OS HR=0.49, p=0.025), representing a 51% reduction in the risk of death. The median PFS was also extended to 9.3 months compared to 5.8 months in the control group (PFS HR=0.43, p=0.006), corresponding to a 57% reduction in the risk of disease progression or death.
Higher Objective Response Rate (ORR): The objective response rate was superior in the cadonilimab group compared to the PD-1 inhibitor group (73.3% vs. 57.1%) for PD-L1-low patients.
Manageable Safety and Good Tolerability: The incidence of any-grade adverse events was comparable between the two groups, and no statistically significant difference observed in the rate of grade 3-4 adverse events between the two groups.
Akeso is actively advancing several prospective head-to-head Phase III registration studies with cadonilimab, aiming to elevate current standard immunotherapies. Notably, the international multi-center Phase III registration study COMPASSION-37, evaluating cadonilimab plus chemotherapy versus the PD-1 inhibitor nivolumab plus chemotherapy for first-line treatment of advanced gastric cancer, received approval from the U.S. FDA to initiate at the end of 2025. This milestone marks a new phase in the global development of cadonilimab.

(Press release, Akeso Biopharma, JAN 13, 2026, View Source [SID1234662024])

On January 13, 2026 BriaCell Therapeutics Corp. (Nasdaq: BCTX, BCTXW, BCTXZ) (TSX: BCT) ("BriaCell" or the "Company"), a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing novel immunotherapies to transform cancer care, reported the durable and sustained complete resolution of a lung metastasis in a patient with metastatic breast cancer (MBC) treated with Bria-OTS, BriaCell’s personalized off the shelf immunotherapy. The patient is hormone receptor-positive (HR+), HER2-negative.

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The first patient enrolled in the Bria-OTS study, a 78-year-old woman with advanced metastatic breast cancer and multiple prior treatment failures, achieved complete (100%) resolution of a lung metastasis following four doses of Bria-OTS single agent therapy. The complete response, initially observed at 2 months (previously reported), was subsequently confirmed at 4 months (previously reported), 6 months (previously reported), and now at 11 months. The patient received 17 cycles of Bria-OTS, completed 12 months of the study, and remains in survival follow-up.

The Phase 1 dose escalation portion of the study is complete and the Phase 2a portion, evaluating combination of Bria-OTS with an immune checkpoint inhibitor, is now underway.

"The sustained clinical response observed in this late-stage MBC patient, who had previously progressed through multiple prior treatments is remarkable," stated Neal S. Chawla MD, Director at the Sarcoma Oncology Center, Santa Monica, CA, and Principal Investigator for the Bria-OTS study. "We are excited to further evaluate Bria-OTS in combination with an immune checkpoint inhibitor in metastatic breast cancer."

"These clinical findings reinforce our confidence in the therapeutic potential and safety of the Bria-OTS platform," added Dr. William V. Williams, BriaCell’s President and CEO. "Our team remains committed to advancing our novel therapeutic approach with the goal of making a meaningful difference for patients with metastatic breast cancer, particularly those with limited treatment options."

About Bria-OTS

Bria-OTS is a next generation, off-the-shelf personalized immunotherapy based on BriaCell’s lead candidate Bria-IMT currently being evaluated in a Phase 1/2a study (ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT06471673) in patients with metastatic recurrent breast cancer. The trial includes both monotherapy dose escalation and checkpoint inhibitor combination dose expansion cohorts. The Company has recently entered the dose expansion phase.

(Press release, BriaCell Therapeutics, JAN 13, 2026, View Source [SID1234662205])