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ESMO 2026: Breakthrough cancer treatment data presented in Madrid FAST-MOVING
The European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) 2026 congress in Madrid has showcased significant advancements in oncology across multiple cancer types.
In melanoma treatment, the phase 3 INTerpath-001 trial demonstrated that combining the personalized mRNA vaccine intismeran autogene with pembrolizumab reduced the risk of recurrence or death by 42% in high-risk patients. Additionally, the STARBOARD study showed that combining encorafenib and binimetinib with pembrolizumab reduced the risk of disease progression or death by 67% in advanced BRAF V600 mutated melanoma.
For lung cancer, the phase 3 SAFFRON trial revealed that osimertinib plus savolitinib reduced the risk of disease progression or death by 45% in patients with EGFR-mutated and MET-altered non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) following osimertinib treatment.
In bladder cancer, the phase 3 Volga study found that perioperative durvalumab combined with enfortumab vedotin reduced the risk of death by 42% in patients with muscle-invasive bladder cancer who were ineligible for cisplatin-based chemotherapy.
Other notable results include the Azur-1 study, where dostarlimab achieved a 71% complete clinical response rate in patients with locally advanced dMmr/Msi-H rectal cancer, potentially allowing patients to avoid surgery, radiation, or chemotherapy. In breast cancer, the Natalee study showed that ribociclib combined with endocrine therapy reduced the risk of death by approximately 20% in HR+Her2- early breast cancer patients over a six-year follow-up.
Entities
Associazione Italiana di Oncologia Medica · Bayer · BeOne Medicines · EMA · ESMO 2026 · European Medicines Agency · European Society for Medical Oncology · FDA · Giuseppe Curigliano · Grigoris Tsiotos · Hellenic Pancreas Institute · Johnson & Johnson
Claims
What the coverage asserts, and how many sources carry each claim.
- [● 3 SOURCES] Italy ranks second in Europe for access to approved anticancer drugs, following Germany. www.innlifes.com · www.aiom.it
- [● 4 SOURCES] The Natalee study shows that ribociclib combined with hormone therapy reduces the risk of breast cancer recurrence.
- [● 3 SOURCES] The average time to access new drugs in Italy is 470 days. www.innlifes.com · www.aiom.it
- [● 3 SOURCES] Italy provides access to 89% of EMA-approved anticancer drugs. www.innlifes.com · www.aiom.it
- [● 3 SOURCES] Lung cancer mortality in males has decreased by 22.5%. www.innlifes.com · www.aiom.it
- [● 3 SOURCES] Only 51% of new drugs approved by the EMA are made available in Europe on average. www.innlifes.com · www.aiom.it
- [● 4 SOURCES] Ribociclib may also decrease the risk of death from breast cancer.
- [● 3 SOURCES] Cancer mortality in Europe is estimated to decrease by 7.8% for men and 5.9% for women by 2026 compared to 2020-2022. www.innlifes.com · www.aiom.it
- [● 6 SOURCES] The survival benefit of daraxonrasib was observed across all RAS genotype subgroups. www.ad-hoc-news.de · pieria24.gr · www.dnews.gr · www.flash.gr
- [● 3 SOURCES] The EMA issued a positive opinion for daraxonrasib on October 15. www.dnews.gr · www.flash.gr · www.pontosnews.gr
- [● 7 SOURCES] Daraxonrasib increased median overall survival to 13.2 months in patients with metastatic pancreatic cancer. www.pontosnews.gr · www.dnews.gr · www.flash.gr · www.ad-hoc-news.de · pieria24.gr
- [● 6 SOURCES] Daraxonrasib is an oral targeted therapy designed to block multiple forms of the active RAS protein. www.ad-hoc-news.de · pieria24.gr · www.dnews.gr · www.flash.gr