Late-Stage Breakthroughs: How 2026's Top Clinical Platforms Are Redefining Cancer Treatment
Issued on behalf of Oncolytics Biotech Inc.
VANCOUVER, BC., Jan. 28, 2026 /CNW/ -- USANewsGroup.com News Commentary – As the global oncology clinical trials market surges toward a projected $25.61 billion valuation by 2035[1], a structural rotation is favoring 'registration-ready' platforms that demonstrate exceptional efficacy and pivotal-trial alignment with 2026's evolving FDA regulatory frameworks[2]. Investors are increasingly prioritizing late-stage and newly commercial companies poised for rapid maturation as sector fundamentals strengthen. This structural shift creates a window for Oncolytics Biotech Inc. (NASDAQ: ONCY), BioNTech (NASDAQ: BNTX), MAIA Biotechnology (NYSE-A: MAIA), Acrivon Therapeutics (NASDAQ: ACRV), and ImmunityBio (NASDAQ: IBRX).
With 2026 set to be a banner year for M&A as buyers facing patent cliffs compete for a limited pool of late-stage assets[3], companies demonstrating disciplined pivotal execution and FDA alignment command asymmetric upside in an environment where executive infrastructure determines valuation floors.
Oncolytics Biotech Inc. (NASDAQ: ONCY) is strengthening its operational and clinical leadership as it advances pelareorep toward multiple registration-directed programs in gastrointestinal cancers.
The company recently announced the appointments of John McAdory as Executive Vice President of Strategy and Operations and Yujun Wu as Vice President, Head of Biostatistics, bringing deep expertise in late-stage oncology trial execution and regulatory strategy. McAdory joins from CG Oncology, where he served as Vice President of Clinical Operations leading late-stage development programs for oncolytic virus therapies. Wu arrives from Morphic Therapeutic, where he headed Biostatistics through the company's acquisition by Eli Lilly, and previously led statistical strategy for multiple Phase 3 oncology programs at Takeda. Both executives bring direct experience navigating complex registration trials and global regulatory interactions.
"John's background running complex, late-stage oncology trials makes him exceptionally well-suited to lead Oncolytics' next phase of execution," said Jared Kelly, CEO of Oncolytics Biotech. "As we progress toward pivotal and registration-enabling studies in anal, pancreatic, and colorectal cancers, his experience will be critical to ensuring disciplined execution, speed, and regulatory alignment."
These appointments complete a transformative executive team buildout following Kelly's promotion to CEO last year and the addition of Chief Business Officer Andrew Aromando. They were both crucial contributors to Ambrx Biopharma's $2 billion acquisition by Johnson & Johnson. Oncolytics also recently expanded its Scientific Advisory Board with globally recognized experts from Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center and MD Anderson Cancer Center, positioning the company for accelerated clinical development across multiple indications.
The company recently announced breakthrough efficacy data showing pelareorep achieved a 33% objective response rate in second-line KRAS-mutant microsatellite stable metastatic colorectal cancer patients when combined with standard chemotherapy. This triples the historical 6-11% response rate for chemotherapy alone in this difficult-to-treat patient population.
The company is also advancing pelareorep toward potential accelerated approval in anal cancer after reporting third-line data that achieved a 29% objective response rate, nearly tripling historical benchmarks in a setting with no FDA-approved treatment options. The median duration of response reached approximately 17 months.
Second-line or later results were equally compelling, with pelareorep achieving a 30% response rate, more than doubling the 13.8% benchmark for the only FDA-approved immunotherapy in this setting. The median duration of response of 15.5 months compared to 9.5 months for standard care demonstrates pelareorep's ability to deliver durable clinical benefit in patients with limited treatment options.
Oncolytics has also secured FDA alignment on its Phase 3 study design for pelareorep in first-line metastatic pancreatic cancer, positioning it to launch the only immunotherapy registration trial currently planned for this disease. This regulatory milestone clears the path for initiating a pivotal study in one of oncology's most challenging therapeutic areas.
CONTINUED… Read this and more news for Oncolytics Biotech at: https://usanewsgroup.com/2023/10/02/the-most-undervalued-oncolytics-company-on-the-nasdaq/
In other recent industry developments and happenings in the market include:
BioNTech (NASDAQ: BNTX) received FDA Fast Track designation for BNT113, an investigational mRNA cancer immunotherapy, for the treatment of patients with human papillomavirus type 16 positive head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) expressing PD-L1. The designation was granted based on preliminary safety and efficacy data from the ongoing pivotal Phase 2/3 AHEAD-MERIT clinical trial evaluating BNT113 in combination with pembrolizumab versus pembrolizumab monotherapy as first-line treatment in patients with unresectable recurrent or metastatic HPV16+ HNSCC expressing PD-L1, a cancer type with limited treatment options where patients experience median overall survival of 20.7 months under current standard of care.
Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma is the seventh most common cancer type worldwide with increasing global incidence, with about one third of cases being HPV-positive and approximately 90% of oropharyngeal cancers driven by HPV16. BNT113 is designed to induce HPV16-specific anti-tumor immune responses by encoding the E6 and E7 proteins of HPV16 that are frequently found in HPV16+ solid tumors, with the FDA Fast Track designation enabling more frequent engagement with the FDA to support development and expedite regulatory review of this novel HPV-targeted chemotherapy-free treatment option.
MAIA Biotechnology (NYSE-A: MAIA) advanced ateganosine into pivotal development with high probability of technical success based on exceptional efficacy data in third-line non-small cell lung cancer. The telomere-targeting agent secured FDA Fast Track designation and represents the first and only direct telomere-targeting anticancer therapy in clinical development, targeting an estimated $50+ billion global immunotherapy market.
"MAIA's strong clinical execution in 2025 delivered exceptional efficacy data for ateganosine sequenced with a checkpoint inhibitor, including disease control, response rates, and survival data well above standard of care benchmarks," said Vlad Vitoc, M.D., founder and CEO of MAIA. "The results clearly differentiate our novel telomere-targeting science and support the U.S. FDA's Fast Track designation granted in 2025, positioning ateganosine for potential eligibility under the Accelerated Approval and Priority Review regulatory pathways."
The company advanced concurrent Phase 3 and Phase 2 expansion trials targeting potential early commercial approval within 18 to 24 months. MAIA Biotechnology received a $2.3 million NIH grant supporting U.S. patient enrollment and is advancing second-generation molecules into Phase 1 development with enhanced expected efficacy.
Acrivon Therapeutics (NASDAQ: ACRV) announced positive data from its ACR-368 Phase 2b registrational-intent trial showing 39% overall response rate in endometrial cancer with 52% confirmed response rate in serous subtype patients with up to two prior lines of therapy. The company submitted EU Clinical Trial Application for Arm 3 enrollment across more than 20 European sites in four major countries, with enrollment completion expected in Q4 2026.
"We are pleased with tangible progress accelerating across multiple high-value opportunities," said Peter Blume-Jensen, M.D., Ph.D., CEO of Acrivon. "We are particularly excited by the observation from our ongoing ACR-368 Phase 2 trial that subjects with serous endometrial cancer with up to two prior lines of therapy are showing over 50% confirmed response rate. This provides an attractive opportunity for rapid Arm 3 enrollment without the need for a pretreatment biopsy, both in the US and more than 20 newly selected sites in major EU countries."
Acrivon Therapeutics has submitted a Phase 3 confirmatory protocol to the FDA for ACR-368 combined with anti-PD-1 therapy in frontline endometrial cancer based on strong preclinical synergy data. The company also reported initial ACR-2316 Phase 1 data showing tumor shrinkage in endometrial cancer, SCLC and squamous NSCLC, with ACR-6840 nominated as its next CDK11 inhibitor development candidate.
ImmunityBio (NASDAQ: IBRX) announced that it recently held a Type B End-of-Phase meeting with the U.S. FDA regarding the Company's supplemental Biologics License Application for ANKTIVA plus Bacillus Calmette-Guérin in BCG-unresponsive non-muscle invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC) with papillary tumors. The Company presented more than five years of follow-up data demonstrating durable disease-specific survival of approximately 96% at 36 months with median survival not yet reached even with five years of follow-up, high rates of cystectomy avoidance of 92% and 82% at one and three years respectively, and a safety profile consistent with the currently approved indication in CIS disease with or without papillary tumors.
"We appreciate the FDA's collaboration throughout this process and remain fully committed to delivering this much-needed therapy to patients who currently have no approved alternatives when standard of care fails," said Richard Adcock, President and CEO of ImmunityBio. "We have completed the assembly and analysis of the requested additional information and will submit it within the next 30 days for the Agency's review."
Based on discussions with the FDA, the Agency recommended that the Company provide certain additional information for its consideration to support a potential resubmission of the sBLA initially submitted in 2025 for the papillary indication, with this additional information not contemplating the initiation or design of a new clinical trial. ImmunityBio commercially launched ANKTIVA for NMIBC CIS with or without papillary tumors in the United States and has since expanded approvals to the United Kingdom and Saudi Arabia, with conditional approval in the European Union.
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SOURCES CITED:
- https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2026/01/20/3222140/0/en/Global-Oncology-Clinical-Trials-Market-Projected-to-Reach-US-25-61-Billion-by-2035-Supported-by-Advances-in-Precision-and-Targeted-Therapies-Says-Astute-Analytica.html
- https://lumanity.com/perspectives/the-8-fda-regulatory-trends-shaping-2026-and-beyond/
- https://www.biospace.com/business/with-biotech-back-analysts-make-their-picks-for-2026
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