Experimental Lung Cancer Drug Cuts Death Risk by 34% in China Trial
An ivonescimab-based therapy from Akeso and Summit Therapeutics lowered death risk by 34% versus standard care in a late-stage Chinese study. Median survival reached 27.9 months compared with 23.7 months for patients on a PD-1 drug plus chemotherapy.
focustaiwan.twAn experimental lung cancer drug developed by Akeso and Summit Therapeutics reduced the risk of death by 34% in a late-stage trial conducted in China, according to data released Sunday. The drug, ivonescimab, targets both PD-1 and VEGF pathways. In the Harmoni-6 trial, patients who received ivonescimab plus chemotherapy lived a median of 27.9 months versus 23.7 months for those given a standalone PD-1 drug and chemotherapy.
The four-month survival gain marks a measurable step forward for squamous cell lung cancer, a subtype often linked to smoking. Bleeding of any severity occurred in nearly one-quarter of ivonescimab patients, twice the rate seen in the control group, though severe bleeding remained under 3%.
Older VEGF drugs controlled tumors but rarely extended survival, prompting earlier doubts about whether ivonescimab’s benefit would persist. The trial results were presented Sunday at a major oncology meeting.
An associate professor of medicine at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai noted the survival difference is neither trivial nor transformative and said its clinical value depends on individual patients. The same physician also pointed out that patients in the control arm lived six months longer than historical expectations, raising questions about how representative the study population was.
Summit Therapeutics plans to release progression-free survival results from its global Harmoni-3 trial for squamous patients in the second half of this year.
Checkpoint inhibitors such as Merck’s Keytruda have transformed lung cancer treatment and generated more than $30 billion in sales last year. Licensing deals for PD-1 drugs reached $30 billion in 2025, nearly double the prior peak. Merck’s head of global oncology clinical development said the company sees room for PD-1/VEGF drugs but does not expect them to replace Keytruda across all indications.
Data on an antibody-drug conjugate from Merck and Kelun, showing a 65% reduction in tumor progression risk, were also presented at the same meeting.
Transparency
Mostly clean rewrite focused on trial data, but retains mild valence skew and selective expert caveats that soften positive survival results.
Valence skew: expert downplays positive 4-month gain with hedging language
The same trial data could be read as meaningful progress against a hard-to-treat cancer, delivering a four-month survival gain in squamous NSCLC where advances have historically been incremental, with a manageable safety profile.
2 independent outlets report the same core facts. This score blends how many outlets corroborate, their editorial tier, and how closely their facts agree — it measures corroboration, not proof.
Sources framed at 65 → our rewrite 28. We stripped 37 points of framing the sources carried in.
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