ESMO 2026 | Professors Jie Wang, Zhijie Wang and Jianchun Duan's Team Reports 95.2% Disease Control With LK101 Combination Maintenance Therapy in Advanced NSCLC

BEIJING, Oct. 25, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- On October 24, 2026, in Madrid, Spain, the team of Professors Jie Wang, Zhijie Wang and Jianchun Duan at the Cancer Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, presented Phase 1b/2a results in a Rapid Oral session at ESMO Congress 2026. The study evaluates LK101, a personalized neoantigen dendritic cell (DC) vaccine, plus tislelizumab as first-line maintenance therapy for locally advanced or metastatic non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

Initiated by Professor Jie Wang's team and independently conducted by investigators, the study (NCT05886439) uses LK101 supplied by Likang Life Sciences. Patients had no actionable driver alterations, PD-L1 TPS ≥1%, and disease control following platinum-doublet chemotherapy plus an anti-PD-1 antibody. Non-squamous patients could also receive pemetrexed maintenance. LK101 uses autologous DCs transfected with mRNA encoding up to 30 patient-specific tumor neoantigens.

As of March 31, 2026, 26 patients had enrolled and 25 received LK101. Among 21 efficacy-evaluable patients, four achieved confirmed partial responses. Following vaccine administration, investigator-assessed ORR was 19.0% and DCR was 95.2%. Some patients experienced further tumor shrinkage during maintenance.

From first-line therapy initiation, median follow-up was 9.5 months, median progression-free survival (PFS) was not reached, and PFS rates at 9 and 12 months were 85.4% and 70.4%.

ELISpot analyses showed increased neoantigen-specific T-cell responses following LK101 administration, alongside increased effector CD8+ T-cell proportions. Partial responders had higher post-priming ELISpot responses. These exploratory findings support LK101-induced immune responses and suggest a potential association with clinical activity.

Most LK101-related adverse events were Grade 1–2. Investigators considered the safety profile manageable.

The session discussant described the PFS rates as impressive and commented favorably on the ELISpot findings. Clinical benefit requires further validation.

A multicenter randomized controlled Phase 2 study has been initiated to evaluate the efficacy and safety of LK101 plus tislelizumab as first-line maintenance therapy in advanced NSCLC.

About Likang Life Sciences

Likang Life Sciences is an innovative biotechnology company focused on AI-powered precision cancer immunotherapy. Integrating artificial intelligence, bioinformatics, genomics, and advanced immunotherapy technologies, it develops precision therapies tailored to patient-specific tumor characteristics. Its pipeline includes personalized neoantigen therapeutic vaccines and neoantigen-specific T-cell therapies.

Website: www.likanglife.com 

SOURCE Likang Life Sciences