Inhibrx Biosciences, Inc.

Inhibrx Biosciences said its experimental cancer drug INBRX-106 combined with Merck's Keytruda produced a confirmed objective response rate of 48.3% versus 26.5% for Keytruda alone in the Phase 2 portion of its HexAgon study in treatment-naive, PD-L1-positive metastatic or unresectable recurrent head and neck squamous cell carcinoma. The study enrolled 68 patients, with 63 evaluable for the primary endpoint, and four patients, or 13.8%, on the combination achieved a complete response versus none on Keytruda alone. Median progression-free survival was 9.6 months for the combination versus 4.9 months for Keytruda alone as of the August 19 data cutoff, and among 10 evaluable HPV-positive patients the confirmed response rate was 80% versus 33.3% among nine patients on Keytruda alone. Inhibrx plans to add approximately 50 HPV-positive oropharyngeal cancer patients to the Phase 2 study to support a potential accelerated regulatory pathway, estimating the U.S. could have approximately 30,000 HPV-positive head and neck cancer patients by 2029, including around 6,000 first-line recurrent patients, representing a $1 billion annual sales opportunity. Despite the data, Inhibrx shares fell 8.8% to $110.45, a move CEO Mark Lappe told Reuters the company could not explain, while Stifel analyst Dara Azar called the results competitive against the difficult OX40 target.

Six biotech stocks profiled by RTTNews have delivered stunning gains for patient investors, with Inhibrx Biosciences surging as much as 746% since its profile was published on July 8, 2025. Palvella Therapeutics rose up to 505% from its March 10, 2025 profile, driven by positive trial results and an FDA rolling review for its rare-disease therapy. MBX Biosciences gained up to 363% since June 18, 2025, following encouraging data from multiple clinical programs. Protagonist Therapeutics advanced as much as 204% from its January 6, 2025 profile after FDA approval of its psoriasis drug. Absci Corp. climbed up to 290% since September 12, 2025, on positive interim data for its AI-designed hair-loss treatment. Belite Bio increased up to 187% from its September 15, 2025 profile, supported by a completed rolling NDA submission for its retinal-disease therapy.