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NIH-led trial: experimental drug invika halted tumour growth in most patients with hard-to-treat cancers
In brief
Early results from the first human trial of an experimental drug called invikafusp alfa, or invika, suggest it may help control cancers that no longer respond to standard immunotherapy, the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) said on October 23, 2026. In the study, led by researchers at NIH, Mass General Brigham and Memorial Sloan Kettering and published in Nature Medicine, the disease stopped progressing in 16 of the 27 patients (59.3%) treated at the best dose, and tumours shrank by more than 30% in four of them.
How the drug works
Many modern cancer treatments, called immune checkpoint inhibitors, take the brakes off the immune system so it can attack tumours. But many patients' cancers stop responding to them. Invika takes a different approach: it selectively boosts specific groups of T cells, the immune cells that fight tumours, without stimulating other T cells. The researchers found that the drug grew these target T-cell groups in patients, and the four cases where tumours shrank matched the biggest shifts in those cells.
What the trial found
In the first phase, patients with many types of cancer received different doses every two weeks so the team could check safety and find the best dose. Several people had flu-like side effects, which the researchers say were expected and generally manageable. At the best dose, disease stopped advancing in most patients whose solid tumours had resisted standard immunotherapy. Two of the patients whose tumours shrank had metastatic colorectal cancer and were on their seventh line of treatment, and another had stage 4 lung cancer. Lower or higher doses did not show clear benefit. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has given the drug Fast Track designation to speed up its review, and the trial is still recruiting.
VSH take: This is an early study with a small number of patients, so it is a promising signal rather than a cure, and larger trials will need to confirm it. Still, results like this give hope to people who have run out of options, and they show how research is moving from treating cancer by type to targeting the immune system more precisely. Curious about the science? Try our science quiz or browse our study guides.
ViralScopeHub is an independent news summary site and is not affiliated with NIH or the companies involved. This is not medical advice; talk to a doctor about any treatment.
Why it matters
Many cancers stop responding to standard immunotherapy, so a drug that can control some of those tumours could open a new option for patients who have few left.
People also ask
What is invika?
Invikafusp alfa, or invika, is an experimental drug that selectively stimulates certain tumour-fighting T cells. It was tested in the phase 1/2 START-001 trial.
How well did invika work in the trial?
At the best dose, disease did not progress in 16 of 27 patients (59.3%), and four (14.8%) had tumours shrink by more than 30%.
Is invika approved?
No. It is still experimental. The FDA has granted it Fast Track designation, and the trial is still enrolling patients.
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Sources
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