Chinese drug sector’s stature grows at major cancer conference

An array of Chinese drug makers showcased positive trial results for new cancer treatments at a major European medical conference, underscoring the expanding international influence of China’s biotech sector.

Domestic innovative drugs, particularly antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs), delivered impressive data across multiple tumour types at the European Society for Medical Oncology (Esmo) Congress, with some early-stage data further showing the country’s “innovation capabilities”, said analysts from China Post Securities in a note on Monday.

Chinese research accounted for 29 of 96 late-breaking abstracts (LBAs) – summaries of newly available clinical research data – presented at the prominent industry conference, held in Madrid from October 23 to 27. Five of the 12 studies selected for the prestigious presidential symposium were also from Chinese firms.

Last year, 23 of 117 LBAs at Esmo were from China, while three Chinese studies were selected for the presidential symposium.

Sichuan Kelun-Biotech Biopharmaceutical’s ADC drug sacituzumab tirumotecan (sac-TMT), for instance, delivered its first global phase three validation, Jefferies’ head of Asia healthcare research Cui Cui noted in a Wednesday report.

ADCs deliver cancer-killing drugs directly to tumour cells in a targeted manner. Sac-TMT, licensed to US pharmaceutical giant Merck for development and commercialisation outside China, reduced the risk of death for patients with advanced or recurrent endometrial cancer by 32 per cent compared with chemotherapy, Merck said on Monday.

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Hansoh Pharmaceutical also said during the conference that its bone cancer drug risvutatug rezetecan (Ris-Rez) reduced the risk of disease progression or death by 67 per cent compared with chemotherapy for patients with progressed or relapsed osteosarcoma. Licensed to British pharmaceutical giant GSK, the drug also increased the median progression-free survival time to 5.5 months from 1.4 months with chemotherapy.

Chinese biotech firm Akeso said during Esmo that its flagship drug ivonescimab, when used in combination with chemotherapy, beat British drug maker AstraZeneca’s Imfinzi combined with chemo in treating biliary tract cancer in a phase three trial in China.

In a Monday note, Nomura’s head of China healthcare research Jialin Zhang described the Akeso result as “another win, though not overwhelming”.

Not all Chinese firms emerged from the conference as winners. Duality Biologics’ ADC trastuzumab pamirtecan, licensed to German firm BioNTech, provided “limited” potential benefit to patients in the treatment of metastatic breast cancer, the companies said. Duality’s Hong Kong stock lost nearly 28 per cent on Tuesday.