1️⃣ Inhibrx made OX40 investable again Inhibrx said INBRX-106 plus pembrolizumab delivered a 44.0% confirmed response rate in evaluable first-line PD-L1-positive HNSCC patients, versus 21.4% for pembrolizumab alone.
💡 Why it matters This is still interim Phase 2 data, but it gives a clean randomized signal for a costimulatory target that has burned a lot of capital before.
☕ Coffee talk If the Phase 3 starts in Q3, does Merck wait for PFS or move before everyone sees the same OX40 chart?
2️⃣ Daiichi is turning ADC scale into oncology ambition Fierce says Daiichi Sankyo is targeting a global top-five oncology rank by 2035 and pairing that with a $1.3B efficiency drive in its new five-year plan.
💡 Why it matters The ADC thesis is no longer just Enhertu leverage. Daiichi is trying to convert platform depth into operating scale while protecting margin.
☕ Coffee talk How many ADC followers can still pretend this is just a pipeline race?
3️⃣ Astellas reopens the XLMTM gene-therapy file Astellas’ ASP2957 is now in a recruiting Phase 1/2 VALOR study for ventilator-dependent boys with XLMTM, using a MyoAAV3.8 capsid designed for muscle targeting.
💡 Why it matters After the AT132 safety history, this is a real test of whether capsid engineering can bring rare neuromuscular AAV back into investable territory.
☕ Coffee talk If the first dose lands cleanly, who else gets permission to reopen the high-dose AAV drawer?