The Promise and Limits of Immunotherapy
Immunotherapy has transformed cancer treatment, but its full potential remains constrained by three persistent challenges: toxicity, durability, and patient reach. Many promising immunotherapies are shelved not because the science fails, but because real-world barriers—systemic inflammatory responses, waning efficacy over time, and limited applicability across cancer types—prove insurmountable in clinical settings.
Singapore’s Experimental Drug Development Centre (EDDC), the national platform for drug discovery and development hosted by A*STAR, is tackling these challenges head-on through a new research collaboration with Daiichi Sankyo. Announced in March 2026, the partnership focuses on developing next-generation NK cell engagers (NKCEs) for cancer therapy.
What Are NK Cell Engagers?
Natural killer (NK) cells are part of the innate immune system and possess a remarkable ability to recognise and eliminate cancer cells without prior sensitisation. NKCEs are an emerging class of bispecific or multi-specific antibodies designed to guide NK cells toward tumours, enhancing their cytotoxic activity. Unlike T-cell-based therapies, NK cell approaches may offer advantages in safety and scalability.
Under the collaboration, EDDC and Daiichi Sankyo will work on a preclinical research programme focused on novel NKCEs developed by EDDC. These next-generation molecules will be designed and evaluated for improved anti-tumour activity with reduced systemic inflammatory responses—a critical goal that could broaden the therapeutic window and improve patient tolerability.
Singapore’s Growing Role in Global Immunotherapy Innovation
The collaboration reflects EDDC’s strategy of pairing advanced biologics and multi-specific engineering capabilities with industry development expertise. As Professor Damian O’Connell, CEO of EDDC, stated, “Too many promising immunotherapies are constrained not by the science, but by real-world challenges such as toxicity, durability, and patient reach. This collaboration reflects EDDC’s strategy to tackle those challenges head-on”.
Daiichi Sankyo, a global pharmaceutical company with a growing oncology portfolio, brings significant development and commercialisation experience to the partnership. For Singapore, the collaboration represents another milestone in its journey from a regional research hub to a global player in cancer drug development. The EDDC’s work on NKCEs is part of a broader national effort—supported by the Ministry of Health’s commitment of S$2.5 billion over five years under the RIE2030 Plan—to strengthen translational and clinical research in oncology and other priority areas.
