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Akeso Announces Approval to Initiate Global Registrational Trial of Cadonilimab (PD-1/CTLA-4) for PD-1 Treatment-Resistant Hepatocellular Carcinoma
Akeso, Inc. (9926.HK) ("Akeso" or the "Company") announced that its global, multicenter, randomized Phase II registrational trial (COMPASSION-36/AK104-225) has been approved to initiate by both China's National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The trial will evaluate cadonilimab, Akeso's first-in-class PD-1/CTLA-4 bispecific antibody, in combination with lenvatinib versus lenvatinib alone for the treatment of advanced hepatocellular carcinom
About this update from Akeso, Inc.
[{"type":"text","content":"HONG KONG, Aug. 4, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Akeso, Inc. (9926.HK) ("Akeso" or the "Company") announced that its global, multicenter, randomized Phase II registrational trial (COMPASSION-36/AK104-225) has been approved to initiate by both China's National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The trial will evaluate cadonilimab, Akeso's first-in-class PD-1/CTLA-4 bispecific antibody, in combination with lenvatinib versus lenvatinib alone for the treatment of advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in patients previously treated with atezolizumab (a PD-L1 inhibitor) and bevacizumab. Akeso is now moving forward with the initiation of the study.","length":723,"tagName":"p"},{"type":"text","content":"The COMPASSION-36/AK104-225 study is a key part of cadonilimab's global development for hepatocellular carcinoma, continuing Akeso's mission to advance cancer immunotherapy standards and to address the current limited survival benefits of single-target therapies. This international, multicenter Phase II trial is designed to tackle the common issue of limited treatment options following resistance to immune checkpoint inhibitors (IO) in cancer therapy.","length":469,"tagName":"p"},{"type":"text","content":"Currently, immune checkpoint inhibitor (IO) combination therapies have become the standard first-line treatment for various advanced malignancies. However, for patients worldwide whose disease progresses after IO combination therapy, there is a lack of effective second-line treatment options. The very limited second-line treatment options for advanced malignancies drives the critical need to explore new therapeutic strategies. Cadonilimab-based combination therapies have shown substantial potential in overcoming IO resistance across multiple tumor types.","length":560,"tagName":"p"},{"type":"text","content":"Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most prevalent malignancies worldwide, with approximately 865,000 new cases of liver cancer reported globally in 2022. The combination of atezolizumab and bevacizumab (A+T regimen) is the standard first-line therapy for advanced HCC, as recommended by the NCCN guidelines. However, for patients whose disease progresses after first-line A+T treatment, there is currently no FDA-approved second-line therap...