The annual premier global academic event in oncology — the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting — took place as scheduled from May 29 to June 2 local time in Chicago, USA. As one of the most influential academic gatherings in global oncology, ASCO has consistently served as the ultimate proving ground for innovative biotech companies to validate their products. The conference brings together clinicians, researchers, biopharma industry professionals, and media from around the world, spotlighting cutting-edge R&D data on novel cancer drugs and breakthrough results from pivotal clinical trials.
Leveraging its deep investment footprint in the biopharmaceutical sector, several portfolio companies of EFUNG Capital presented significant clinical research at this year's ASCO Annual Meeting, disclosing key clinical trial data for multiple proprietary drug candidates. This article compiles the major academic achievements of EFUNG's portfolio projects at the conference, offering a glimpse into the latest advancements in their pipeline development.
Westlake Therapeutics
Long-Term Follow-Up Results of the World's First Red Blood Cell-Antibody Conjugate
At ASCO 2026, EFUNG Capital's portfolio company, Westlake Therapeutics, announced long-term follow-up results for its proprietary immunoerythrocyte drug, WTX-212 (red blood cell-conjugated anti-PD-1 antibody), in patients with advanced solid tumors resistant to PD-1/PD-L1 therapy.
As of the data cutoff date (October 31, 2025), the median progression-free survival (mPFS) for all enrolled patients was 5.6 months, and the median overall survival (mOS) reached 23.4 months. In patients with advanced solid tumors who developed resistance after prior PD-1/PD-L1 therapy, WTX-212 continued to demonstrate clinically meaningful long-term survival signals. The related poster also received the Conquer Cancer – Anthony and Marilyn Tolcher Endowed Merit Award from the conference.
Genuine Biotech
Phase I Clinical Data of Azvudine Released: Tackling the Treatment Challenge of MSS Colorectal Cancer
EFUNG Capital's portfolio company, Genuine Biotech, in collaboration with Ruijin Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, also presented Phase I clinical study data of Azvudine (FNC) in patients with advanced solid tumors in a poster session at this year's ASCO. The findings preliminarily confirmed the potential of this domestic nucleoside drug in solid tumor therapy, particularly demonstrating encouraging efficacy and a favorable safety profile in patients with microsatellite stable (pMMR/MSS) colorectal cancer.
Qiyu Biotech
Q-1802 at ASCO: 70% Objective Response Rate, Successfully Advancing to Phase III
EFUNG Capital's portfolio company, Qiyu Biotech, published Phase Ib/II clinical data for its Q-1802 project in the 2026 ASCO abstract. The report (Abstract #537934) is titled "A Phase I/II trial of anti-CLDN18.2/PD-L1 recombinant humanized bispecific antibody Q-1802 in combination with XELOX as first-line treatment for CLDN18.2-positive advanced gastric/gastroesophageal junction adenocarcinoma."
The authors, including Dr. Gong, concluded that Q-1802 in combination with the XELOX regimen as first-line treatment for CLDN18.2-positive/HER2-negative advanced gastric/gastroesophageal junction adenocarcinoma demonstrated a manageable safety profile and encouraging antitumor activity, supporting the use of Q-1802 at a dose of 10 mg/kg as the recommended dose for Phase III clinical trials. It is reported that the Phase III clinical trial for Q-1802 was recently approved by the Center for Drug Evaluation of China's National Medical Products Administration.
Beijing Biostar Pharmaceuticals (2563.HK)
Four Studies Across Four Cancer Types at ASCO: Multiple Breakthroughs for Oral Utidelone
EFUNG Capital's portfolio company, Beijing Biostar Pharmaceuticals (2563.HK), presented four Phase II clinical studies at this year's ASCO poster session, leveraging its proprietary utidelone (injection UTD1 + oral capsule UTD2).
A study led by Academician Xu Binghe of the Cancer Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, evaluated utidelone capsules (UTD2) in combination with capecitabine (CAP) for metastatic breast cancer. The results demonstrated excellent antitumor activity and a significantly improved safety profile, notably reducing the incidence of grade 3 peripheral neuropathy from 25.1% with the injectable formulation to just 2%, offering a new oral chemotherapy option for breast cancer patients.
Professor Wu Xiaohua, Director of the Gynecologic Oncology Department at Fudan University Shanghai Cancer Center, focused on platinum-resistant recurrent ovarian cancer, an area with substantial unmet medical needs. The disclosed data showed that this combination regimen achieved a high objective response rate and a favorable safety profile in patients with platinum-resistant recurrent ovarian cancer.
A study conducted by Professor Sun Tao's team at the Cancer Hospital of Dalian University of Technology evaluated the triple combination of utidelone + inetetamab + pyrotinib in first/second-line treatment of HER2-positive metastatic breast cancer. The results showed excellent antitumor activity, with an objective response rate (ORR) of 82.4% and a median PFS exceeding 13 months, indicating a favorable long-term survival trend.
At the conference, Beijing Biostar (2563.HK) also presented a Phase II single-arm study of its core product, utidelone injection (UTD1), as monotherapy for patients with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer. The study, led by Professor Shi Yanxia's team at Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center, showed that UTD1 monotherapy exhibited good antitumor activity and a favorable safety profile, supporting further clinical exploration of utidelone in this patient population.
Ascentage Pharma (AAPG, 6855.HK)
Nine Consecutive Years at ASCO: Three Studies Selected for Rapid Oral Presentations with Impressive Data
As a key portfolio company of EFUNG Capital, Ascentage Pharma (Nasdaq: AAPG, HKEX: 6855) appeared at the ASCO annual meeting for the ninth consecutive year. This year, the company had six clinical studies accepted, including three for rapid oral presentations and three for poster presentations. These studies involve three key products: olverembatinib (tradename: Nailike®), China's first approved third-generation BCR-ABL inhibitor; lisaftoclax (tradename: Lishengto®), China's first approved domestically developed original Bcl-2 selective inhibitor; and alrizomadlin (APG-115), an MDM2-p53 inhibitor.
Chipscreen Biosciences (688321.SH)
Four Clinical Results Unveiled: Chiauranib Phase III Ovarian Cancer Study Selected for Oral Presentation
As an early-stage portfolio company of EFUNG Capital, Chipscreen Biosciences (688321.SH) presented four clinical studies on its two core proprietary products, chidamide and chiauranib, at ASCO 2026. The studies cover multiple high-incidence tumor types, including colorectal cancer, breast cancer, and platinum-resistant ovarian cancer. Notably, the Phase III CHIPRO study of chiauranib, led by Professor Wu Xiaohua, Director of the Gynecologic Oncology Department at Fudan University Shanghai Cancer Center, was selected for an LBA (Late-Breaking Abstract) oral presentation.
In ovarian cancer, the Phase III study of chiauranib combined with weekly paclitaxel yielded impressive results. Leveraging the epigenetic modulation advantages of chidamide, three Phase II studies explored combination regimens with PD-1 inhibitors and targeted therapies for difficult-to-treat MSS colorectal cancer, third-line colorectal cancer, and CDK4/6 inhibitor-resistant HR-positive breast cancer. All studies demonstrated positive efficacy signals and manageable adverse reactions, providing new combination treatment strategies for multiple refractory solid tumors.
EFUNG CAPITAL
Gathering Wisdom, Striving Together for Breakthroughs
The outstanding performance of EFUNG Capital's portfolio companies at ASCO 2026 underscores the true R&D strength of China's innovative drug industry. Moving forward, EFUNG Capital will continue to stay true to its core mission, deeply cultivate investments in innovative biopharmaceuticals, partner with more local biopharma companies to advance source innovation and global expansion, and work hand-in-hand with China's biopharmaceutical industry to continuously break new ground in the global fight against cancer, delivering more high-quality, domestically developed new drugs to the world.
References:
https://www.asco.org/abstractspresentations/267303
https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/hy10thpu_2nOSHiT0zWB8g
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