On March 26, 2026 FoRx Therapeutics, a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing precision anti-cancer therapeutics, reported the presentation of the molecular structure, discovery, and preclinical data supporting the potential best-in-class profile of its PARG inhibitor, FORX-428, currently in Phase 1 development, at the American Chemical Society (ACS) Spring 2026 meeting in Atlanta.

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This disclosure of the novel molecular structure of FORX-428 represents the first description of the discovery and chemical structure of a clinical-stage PARG inhibitor candidate.

Data presented at ACS Spring 2026 showed FORX-428’s differentiated preclinical profile relative to a competitor reference compound, including superior selectivity and pharmacokinetics (PK), with potency shown to be at least 10-fold higher across multiple solid tumor cell lines. FORX-428 has demonstrated the potential for a best-in-class profile, supported by favorable preclinical safety and toxicology data and a promising predicted human PK profile.

In preclinical studies, FORX-428 showed robust anti-tumor activity in hard-to-treat models across three distinct target populations: HRD-positive, PARP inhibitor-resistant, and high replication stress tumors. By comparison, the reference compound showed activity primarily in highly sensitive models.

Tarig Bashir, CEO of FoRx Therapeutics, said: "The robust preclinical data presented at ACS Spring 2026 support FORX-428’s best-in-class potential and why we believe it has the potential to meaningfully improve treatment options for patients. Our ongoing Phase 1 trial is progressing according to plan toward an initial clinical readout in the coming months."

The discovery that distinct genetic subsets of cancer are exceptionally vulnerable to drugs that interfere with the DNA Damage Response (DDR) led to the approval of PARP inhibitors more than 10 years ago, transforming cancer treatment. FoRx is pursuing PARG as a next-generation DDR target with significant potential as a new treatment approach for patients whose cancers are resistant to, or have become resistant to, PARP inhibitors.

The Phase 1 trial of FORX-428 is progressing as planned, with initial data readout expected in mid- 2026. The open-label study, which began recruitment in August 2025 and is being conducted at leading cancer centers in the United States, is evaluating safety, tolerability, pharmacokinetics, and preliminary efficacy in patients with advanced solid tumors who have exhausted standard-of-care options.

ACS Spring 2026 is taking place in Atlanta, Georgia, USA, from March 22 to 26.

FORX-428 is designed to inhibit the poly (ADP-ribose) glycohydrolase (PARG) enzyme to cause tumor cell death. PARG is a key DNA repair enzyme necessary for the survival of certain genetically defined cancers, harboring specific DDR deficiencies or high replication stress. Preclinical studies demonstrated that FORX-428 has robust anti-tumor activity across multiple solid tumor types, underscoring the novel compound’s promising potential in both monotherapy and combination settngs. Importantly, FORX-428 was well tolerated, demonstrating drug-like pharmacology and a favorable safety profile.

(Press release, FoRx Therapeutics, MAR 26, 2026, View Source [SID1234663940])

On March 26, 2026 Can-Fite BioPharma Ltd. (NYSE American: CANF) (TASE: CANF), a biotechnology company developing a pipeline of proprietary small molecule drugs targeting oncological and inflammatory diseases, reported clinical updates and financial results for the year ended December 31, 2025 and early 2026.

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Advances in Clinical Programs

Pancreatic Cancer

Phase 2a study in pancreatic cancer met its primary endpoint of safety in heavily pretreated patients. The study continues to follow patients for overall survival, with data maturing over time; currently more than 30% of patients are alive at last data cut-off.

Hepatocellular Carcinoma (HCC)

A patient with advanced HCC, treated with Namodenoson has reached an overall survival of more than 9 years with complete response to treatment. The patient was enrolled into a Phase 2 study and continues to be treated with Namodenoson through a compassionate use program. Nine years following treatment, the patient remains cancer-free and meets the definition of a complete responder based on the disappearance of all tumor lesions and good quality of life. Namodenoson continues to advance in a Phase 3 study for hepatocellular carcinoma, supported by Orphan Drug and Fast Track designations from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, reinforcing its potential as a novel therapeutic option in liver oncology.

Clinical Progress in Decompensated Liver Cirrhosis

The Company observed complete resolution of esophageal varices in a patient with decompensated cirrhosis—an uncommon outcome in this population, along with overall clinical stabilization. The patient subsequently underwent successful liver transplantation following prolonged treatment, supporting the potential role of Namodenoson as a disease-modifying therapy and a bridge to transplant in end-stage liver disease.

Expansion into Metabolic and Obesity Indications

The Company expanded Namodenoson’s therapeutic potential into metabolic diseases, including obesity, supported by new scientific findings and patent allowances. These developments further highlight the versatility of the A3 adenosine receptor (A3AR) platform and its applicability across multiple high-value indications.

Strengthening of Intellectual Property Portfolio

Can-Fite continued to expand its global intellectual property estate with multiple patent allowances across key territories, including Israel, Canada, and Brazil, covering novel therapeutic uses of Namodenoson. These additions further strengthen the Company’s long-term commercial positioning and pipeline value.

Motti Farbstein Can-Fite’s CEO&CFO stated: "The past months have marked a period of significant progress for Can-Fite, highlighted by encouraging clinical signals across multiple indications and continued expansion of our intellectual property portfolio. Notably, clinical observations in advanced liver disease suggest that Namodenoson may have the potential to modify disease course and serve as a bridge to transplantation. Together with our advancing oncology programs and expanding metabolic pipeline, we believe these developments position Can-Fite for meaningful value creation in the near and long term."

Financial Results

Revenues

Revenues for the year ended December 31, 2025 were $0.41 million, a decrease of $0.27 million, or 40% compared to $0.67 million for the year ended December 31, 2024. The decrease in revenues was mainly due to the recognition of a lower portion of advance payments received under the Ewopharma distribution agreement entered in 2021 and a lower portion of advance payments received under distribution agreements from Gebro, Chong Kun Dung Pharmaceuticals, and Cipher Pharmaceuticals.

Research and development expenses

Research and development expenses for the year ended December 31, 2025 were $6.69 million, an increase of $0.9 million, or 16.26% compared to $5.75 million for the year ended December 31, 2024. Research and development expenses for the year ended December 31, 2025 comprised primarily of expenses associated with the ongoing of the Phase 3 study of Piclidenoson for the treatment of psoriasis and two ongoing studies for Namodenoson, a Phase 3 study in the treatment of advanced liver cancer and a Phase 2b study for MASH. The increase is primarily due to acceleration in expenses associated with both Namodenoson and Piclidenoson.

General and administrative expenses

General and administrative expenses were $3.66 million for the year ended December 31, 2025, an increase of $0.6 million, or 20.2% compared to $3.04 million for the year ended December 31, 2024. The increase is primarily due to the increase in investors relationship expenses. We expect that general and administrative expenses will remain at the same level through 2026.

Financial income, net

Financial income, net for the year ended December 31, 2025 aggregated $0.12 million compared to $0.25 million for the year ended December 31, 2024. The decrease in financial income, net was mainly due to lower income on short term deposits.

Net loss for the year ended December 31, 2025 was $9.83 million compared with a net loss of $7.88 million for the year ended December 31, 2024. The increase in net loss for the year ended December 31, 2025 was primarily attributable to an increase in research and development expenses and an increase in general and administrative expenses.

As of December 31, 2025, Can-Fite had cash and cash equivalents and short term deposits of $8.54 million as compared to $7.88 million at December 31, 2024. The increase in cash during the year ended December 31, 2025 is mainly due to higher net cash provided by financing activities. On March 4, 2026, the Company received aggregate gross proceeds of approximately $4.3 million from warrant exercises and a warrant inducement.

The Company’s consolidated financial results for the year ended December 31, 2025 are presented in accordance with US GAAP Reporting Standards. 

More detailed information can be found in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 20-F for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2025, a copy of which has been filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The Annual Report, which contains the Company’s audited consolidated financial statements, can be accessed on the SEC’s website at View Source as well as via the Company’s investor relations website at View Source The Company will deliver a hard copy of its Annual Report, including its complete audited consolidated financial statements, free of charge, to its shareholders upon request to Can-Fite Investor Relations at 26 Ben Gurion Street, Ramat Gan, 5257346, Israel or by phone at +972-3-9241114.

(Press release, Can-Fite BioPharma, MAR 26, 2026, View Source [SID1234663938])

On March 26, 2026 Alivexis, Inc. (Headquartered in Minato-ku, Tokyo; CEO S. Roy Kimura) reported that it has entered into a Research Collaboration Agreement with Astellas Pharma Inc. ("Astellas"), representing the second collaboration program between the two companies. It follows the initial collaboration launched in June 2024, under which Astellas exercised its option in September 2025 to obtain rights to the research outcomes.

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The collaboration aims to utilize Alivexis’ computational drug discovery platform, including ModBind, to discover new small molecule compounds which will regulate the function of a novel drug target molecule selected by Astellas. In addition to in silico evaluation using the computational drug discovery platform, Alivexis will be responsible for integrated drug discovery research, including the development of experimental assays and compound evaluation using those assays. Under the terms of the collaboration, Astellas will have the option to acquire rights to the research deliverables.

About ModBind.
ModBind is a proprietary physics-based simulation technology developed by Alivexis that enables high-speed, highly accurate prediction of absolute binding strength between small molecule compounds and target proteins, without the need for experimentally-derived biological activity data. Leveraging ModBind along with other platform technologies, we have already advanced five compounds to clinical candidate status. MDI-0151 program resulted in a licensing agreement with a Swiss company in June 2024, valued at approximately 42.5 billion yen, demonstrating the practical and commercial utility of our technology. In addition, we have conducted multiple joint research projects with pharmaceutical companies, with ModBind serving as the core technology in these collaborations.
In addition, we were selected for the third round of the "GENIAC (Generative AI Accelerator Challenge)" program, a project led by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) and the New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO) which aims to strengthen domestic development capabilities in generative AI. By integrating ModBind with AI training, we aim to build and implement a generative AI foundation model for drug discovery that predicts the biological activity of small-molecule compounds with world-leading accuracy. In addition, the company is advancing collaborative research with pharmaceutical companies utilizing these platform technologies and has already generated multiple outcomes.

【CEO S. Roy Kimura’s Comments】
"I am excited to announce the signing of a second drug discovery collaboration with Astellas focused on the use of our proprietary and ground-breaking ModBind simulation technology to accelerate early drug discovery for a selected disease target. Through our collaboration, we look forward to gaining further validation of our technology while contributing to the discovery of novel clinical candidate compounds for diseases with significant unmet medical needs."

(Press release, Alivexis, MAR 26, 2026, View Source [SID1234663937])

On March 26, 2026 Ono Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Osaka, Japan; President: Toichi Takino; "Ono") reported that Ono submitted an application for the manufacturing and marketing approval of ripretinib (DCC-2618), developed by Deciphera Pharmaceuticals, Inc. ("Deciphera"), for the indication of "gastrointestinal stromal tumor that has progressed following cancer chemotherapy."

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This application is based on the results of the INVICTUS study, a global Phase 3 clinical study, evaluating the efficacy of ripretinib compared to placebo in patients with advanced gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST) who have received prior treatment with 3 or more kinase inhibitors, including imatinib. In this study, ripretinib significantly prolonged the primary endpoint of progression-free survival (PFS) compared to placebo.

"GIST is recognized as a rare disease worldwide, and ripretinib, developed by Deciphera, has already been approved in more than 40 countries and regions, including the United States and Europe. This application for approval of ripretinib represents a significant advancement for patients with GIST in Japan," said Tatsuya Okamoto, Corporate Officer / Executive Director, Clinical Development of Ono. "Moving forward, we remain committed to developing and providing innovative medicines to meet the treatment needs of patients and the expectations of society."

"The application submission brings us one step closer to providing patients in Japan with advanced GIST a potential new treatment option. We anticipate that this submission may help address the issue of delayed access to new medicines, which remains a significant challenge for patients in Japan," said Ryota Udagawa, President and Chief Executive Officer of Deciphera. "As GIST is a rare type of tumor, the limited availability of disease information and current treatment options are likely to cause significant anxiety for patients. Together with our group companies, we will continue to make every effort to deliver ripretinib to patients in Japan suffering from advanced GIST as quickly as possible."

About the INVICTUS Study

The INVICTUS Phase 3 clinical study is a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, international, multicenter study conducted in 12 overseas countries including US and EU to evaluate the safety, tolerability, and efficacy of ripretinib compared to placebo in 129 patients with advanced GIST who have received prior treatment with 3 or more kinase inhibitors, including imatinib. Patients were randomized 2:1 to either 150 mg of ripretinib or placebo once daily.

In the INVICTUS study, ripretinib significantly prolonged the primary endpoint of PFS determined by independent central radiologic review (a median PFS of 6.3 months in ripretinib arm compared to 1.0 month in the placebo arm, HR of 0.15, p<0.0001). 1)

About GIST

GIST is a mesenchymal tumor that arises from the muscular layer of the gastrointestinal tract and forms a mass that pushes up the mucosa from below. GIST is a rare disease, with an incidence of approximately 1 to 2 cases per 100,000 population per year. In Japan, the number of patients diagnosed with GIST between 2016 and 2018 was 4,475 over three years (approximately 1,492 cases per year; crude incidence rate: 1.18 cases per 100,000 population). 2) It is known that mutations in KIT (KIT proto-oncogene receptor tyrosine kinase) and PDGFRα (platelet-derived growth factor receptor α) are involved in the development of the majority of patients with GIST.

For unresectable, metastatic, or recurrent GIST, four agents—imatinib, sunitinib, regorafenib, and pimitespib—are currently approved in Japan. According to the Japanese clinical practice guidelines for GIST, these agents are recommended as first-line, second-line, third-line, and fourth-line treatments, respectively. 3)

About ripretinib

Ripretinib is an orally administered, tyrosine kinase inhibitor developed by Deciphera. Ripretinib inhibits primary and secondary KIT mutations in exons 9, 11, 13, 14, 17, and 18, which are involved in GIST. In addition, ripretinib inhibits primary PDGFRα mutations in exons 12, 14, and 18, including the exon 18 D842V mutation, which is present in a subset of GIST. The INVICTUS study has demonstrated the significant efficacy of ripretinib in patients with advanced GIST who have received prior treatment with 3 or more kinase inhibitors, including imatinib. Ripretinib was launched in the U.S. in 2020 under the brand name QINLOCK. As of March 2026, it is approved for the treatment of advanced GIST in more than 40 countries or regions, including the U.S. and European countries.

In Japan, ripretinib was designated as an orphan drug by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare on March 19, 2026, for the treatment of GIST that have progressed following cancer chemotherapy. In addition, ripretinib was determined as a drug with high medical needs at the "67th Evaluation Committee on Unapproved or Off-label Drugs with High Medical Needs" held by Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, aiming to eliminate drug losses in Japan.

(Press release, Ono, MAR 26, 2026, View Source [SID1234663917])

On March 25, 2026 Jecho Laboratories, Inc. reported it will present emerging preclinical data on JLC062, a novel B7-H3/PD-L1 bispecific antibody drug conjugate (bsADC) at the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) (Free AACR Whitepaper) Annual Meeting 2026. B7-H3 is a tumor-associated antigen highly expressed in solid tumors, while PD-L1 plays a key role in suppressing immune responses. JLC062 is composed of a fast-internalizing anti-B7-H3 arm and a non-internalizing anti-PD-L1 arm, which enables targeted delivery of a cytotoxic payload to tumors and disrupts immunosuppressive signaling while minimizing toxicity to immune cells. JLC062 is a promising therapeutic modality that integrates immune checkpoint inhibition with targeted cytotoxic delivery that may yield deep and durable antitumor responses.

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The AACR (Free AACR Whitepaper) Annual Meeting will be held April 17-22, 2026 in San Diego, CA.

Details on the presentation are below. The full abstract can be found on the AACR (Free AACR Whitepaper) website.

Abstract 6561 /27: Rational design of a B7-H3/PD-L1 bsADC combining checkpoint blockade with targeted cytotoxicity for improved antitumor efficacy

Session Name: Clinical Research Track, Immune Checkpoint Blockade, PO.CL05.04
Session Time: Tuesday, April 21, 2026 2 – 5 p.m. PST
Location: San Diego Convention Center, Poster Section 44

(Press release, Jecho Laboratories, MAR 25, 2026, View Source [SID1234664150])