Posts by Mourabit Halima

In recent years, immunotherapy-based combination regimens have transformed the treatment landscape of renal cell carcinoma (RCC) and have become standard first-line options for advanced clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC). However, therapeutic progress in non-clear cell renal cell carcinoma (nccRCC) has remained limited. At the 2026 American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting, the research team led by Professor Hao Zeng, Professor Xu Hu, and Dr. Junru Chen from West China Hospital, Sichuan University, presented encouraging findings on first-line treatment with cadonilimab plus axitinib in patients with nccRCC, offering a promising new option for this underserved patient population. Oncology Frontier – UroStream invited Dr. Junru Chen to discuss the study and its implications.

ASCO 2026 has officially opened, featuring 518 major studies in genitourinary oncology, with antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) emerging as one of the most exciting areas of progress. Among them, enfortumab vedotin (EV), a Nectin-4-targeting ADC, was the subject of 36 presentations, continuing to drive transformative changes in the treatment landscape of urothelial carcinoma (UC).

The combination of immune checkpoint inhibitors and antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) is rapidly expanding from the first-line treatment of advanced disease into the perioperative setting, fundamentally reshaping the treatment landscape of urothelial carcinoma (UC). As global research momentum continues to accelerate, Chinese-developed immunotherapy–ADC combinations are emerging as important contributors to this evolving field.

In recent years, rapid advances in surgical robotics and information technology have enabled remote robotic surgery to transcend geographic barriers and redefine the future of surgical care. At the same time, China’s innovative drug development efforts have achieved major international milestones. The phase III RC48-C016 study evaluating toripalimab plus disitamab vedotin (DV) as first-line treatment for urothelial carcinoma was published in The New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM), marking a landmark achievement for Chinese oncology research.

Urothelial carcinoma is one of the most common malignancies of the urinary tract, with bladder cancer representing its most prevalent subtype. In recent years, immunotherapy has offered new hope for patients with advanced disease. However, not all patients derive meaningful benefit.

Upper tract urothelial carcinoma (UTUC) accounts for a substantially higher proportion of urothelial carcinoma cases in China than in Western populations. Although radical nephroureterectomy remains the standard treatment for UTUC, many patients become ineligible for cisplatin-based chemotherapy after surgery because of impaired renal function and other comorbidities. Furthermore, subgroup analyses from three major adjuvant immunotherapy trials have failed to demonstrate a significant disease-free survival (DFS) benefit in patients with UTUC, underscoring the urgent need for novel therapeutic strategies.

For nearly four decades, platinum-based chemotherapy has remained the standard first-line treatment for urothelial carcinoma (UC). However, its limitations—including modest survival outcomes and significant treatment-related toxicity—have persisted as major clinical challenges.