Major Cancer Drug Trials Deliver Positive Phase 3 Results at ESMO 2026

Several late-breaking oncology trials reported significant positive outcomes at the European Society for Medical Oncology Congress 2026 in Madrid, spanning pancreatic cancer, gastric cancer, breast cancer and small cell lung cancer.

Revolution Medicines presented overall survival subgroup data for its approved RAS inhibitor daraxonrasib (RASONQUE) in previously treated metastatic pancreatic cancer at ESMO 2026, building on Phase 3 results that earlier showed the drug nearly doubled typical survival. Separately, Tango Therapeutics reported Phase 1/2 data combining vopimetostat with daraxonrasib in second- and third-line pancreatic cancer, showing an 82% objective response rate, a 9-month progression-free survival rate of 88%, and a median PFS that had not yet been reached.

Takeda announced statistically significant and clinically meaningful improvements in both overall survival and progression-free survival from its Phase 3 G-HOPE-001 study of arcotatug tavatecan (TAK-921), a Claudin 18.2-targeted antibody-drug conjugate developed with Innovent, in previously treated advanced gastric or gastroesophageal junction adenocarcinoma. The results were delivered in a late-breaking oral presentation at ESMO.

In breast cancer, izalontamab brengitecan (iza-bren), a potential first-in-class EGFRxHER3 bispecific ADC developed by SystImmune and Bristol Myers Squibb, reduced the risk of disease progression or death by 59% compared with chemotherapy in patients with advanced HR-positive, HER2-negative breast cancer in the Phase 3 PANKU-Breast01 study.

Zai Lab shared the first data from a global Phase 1b trial of zocilurtatug pelitecan (zoci, formerly ZL-1310), a DLL3-targeted ADC, combined with atezolizumab with and without carboplatin as a first-line treatment for extensive-stage small cell lung cancer, reporting high response rates, encouraging durability and a well-tolerated safety profile.