News from ASCO 2026

From 29 May to 2 June, the world’s leading oncologists and researchers, including scientists from The Institute of Cancer Research, London, will converge at the  2026 American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting – a premier event in the global cancer research calendar.

Read some of the highlights of studies presented this year involving researchers from the ICR and our partners at The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust.

Image of immunofluorescence staining of bladder tumour tissue. Some areas appear lighter green, some dark blue, and others black.
Immunotherapy boost can spare more bladder cancer patients major surgery

02/06/26

An immunotherapy helps bladder cancer patients remain cancer free and enables them to avoid surgery, a phase II trial has found.
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Histopathologic image illustrating squamous cell carcinoma.
Immunotherapy injection shrinks tumours in patients with recurrent and/or metastatic head and neck cancer

31/05/26

A targeted cancer treatment given via a simple injection under the skin shrank tumours in more than one third of patients with recurrent and/or metastatic head and neck cancer whose disease has stopped responding to standard treatments, according to research led by scientists at The Institute of Cancer Research, London
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Image of pill bottle with pills spilling out
New targeted therapy shrinks advanced gastrointestinal tumours for 61 per cent of patients in an early study

30/05/26

A new, targeted cancer therapy for advanced gastrointestinal stromal tumours (GIST) has shown promising early results, with 61 per cent of patients who received velzatinib as first-line treatment experiencing tumour shrinkage of 30 per cent or over. The results could pave the way for a larger trial to evaluate this therapy as a first-line alternative to imatinib, which has been the standard treatment for more than two decades.
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Big Bang moment in bowel cancer research
Targeted therapy shows promise for patients with advanced colorectal cancer in a first-in-human study

30/05/26

A targeted antibody therapy combined with standard chemotherapy has shown early signs of tumour shrinkage and disease control in patients with advanced bowel cancer, according to new Phase I clinical trial results from The Institute of Cancer Research, London and The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust.
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A fluorescence microscope image of Xenopus cancer kidney cells in interphase
Combination immunotherapy significantly reduces kidney cancer recurrence after surgery

30/05/26

Results from the international Phase III RAMPART trial were presented today at the 2026 American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting by researchers from The Institute of Cancer Research, London and The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust.
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If you’re a journalist and want to find out more, you can contact our media relations team.

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