Pfizer, in collaboration with Merck and Astellas Pharma, announced positive topline results from a Phase 3 clinical trial demonstrating that the combination of Padcev (enfortumab vedotin-ejfv) and Keytruda (pembrolizumab) significantly improves event-free survival, overall survival, and pathologic complete response rates in patients with muscle-invasive bladder cancer who are ineligible for cisplatin-based chemotherapy. The treatment was administered before and after surgery, showing enhanced benefits for this hard-to-treat patient group. The results were described as a breakthrough in bladder cancer therapy and have prompted Pfizer to explore expanding the use of antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs). Additionally, Merck received Health Canada approval for Keytruda to treat patients with resectable locally advanced head and neck squamous cell carcinoma tumors that are PD-L1 (CPS) positive, to be used as neoadjuvant treatment continued as adjuvant therapy combined with radiotherapy. Separately, early phase 1 trials of a new vaccine targeting colorectal and pancreatic cancer have shown promising results, and research into mRNA-based vaccines against gastric cancer metastasis has demonstrated tumor regression and eradication in preclinical models.