From Approval to Access: Recent Developments Patients with Blood Cancers and Solid Tumors Should Know About

Summary: This article highlights several major developments in hematology and oncology in China since June 2026. The world's first CAR-T product for a solid tumor was approved for CLDN18.2-positive advanced gastric cancer; China's National Healthcare Security Administration launched its annual reimbursement-list adjustment, opening the application pathway for a number of innovative anticancer drugs; the first in-hospital prescription in China of belantamab mafodotin provided another treatment option for relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma; Dr. Jing Pan's team presented new data on a nanobody-based dual-epitope CD5 CAR-T approach at the EHA Congress; and several GoBroad hospitals expanded access to approved CAR-T products. Together, these changes reflect a broader shift from having innovative therapies available in principle to making them more accessible in clinical practice.

For many people living with blood cancers or solid tumors, every newly approved drug, research breakthrough, or additional treatment option can represent another reason for hope.

Since June 2026, a number of developments in hematology and oncology in China have drawn particular attention: innovative drugs have received regulatory approval, advanced therapies have moved into real-world clinical use, original research has been presented internationally, and more specialized medical resources have become available to patients.

Below, we highlight several updates that may matter to patients and families — and explain what these changes could mean in practical terms.

The World's First CAR-T Therapy for a Solid Tumor Is Approved

In June 2026, China's National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) approved a CLDN18.2-targeted CAR-T product for patients with CLDN18.2-positive advanced gastric cancer or gastroesophageal junction cancer.

This became the world's first approved CAR-T therapy for a solid tumor. Until now, CAR-T has been used mainly in hematologic malignancies such as leukemia, lymphoma, and multiple myeloma. The approval marks an important step in extending cell therapy beyond blood cancers into solid tumors.

For some patients with gastric cancer whose disease has progressed after multiple lines of treatment, this may provide an additional treatment option. Beijing GoBroad Hospital can now evaluate and treat eligible patients in accordance with the nationally approved indication. (Sources: National Medical Products Administration [NMPA]; Beijing GoBroad Hospital)

Annual Reimbursement-List Review Begins, Bringing Innovative Drugs One Step Closer to Patients

In June, China's National Healthcare Security Administration (NHSA) formally launched the 2026 adjustment of the National Reimbursement Drug List, with a number of innovative anticancer medicines entering the application process.

For many patients, an innovative drug may represent a new treatment possibility — but high out-of-pocket costs can also make long-term treatment difficult to continue.

One of the most important goals of the reimbursement-list adjustment is to give clinically valuable new medicines a pathway to national reimbursement negotiations, which may help reduce the financial burden of sustained treatment for patients.

The final negotiation results have not yet been announced. Even so, the start of the review means that a number of innovative medicines have moved one step closer to becoming more affordable and more sustainable for long-term use. (Source: National Healthcare Security Administration [NHSA])

BCMA-Targeted ADC Enters Real-World Use, Adding Another Option for Multiple Myeloma

For patients with relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma, treatment is often a long journey involving one therapy after another. As the number of prior treatment lines increases, the disease may continue to relapse or progress while available options become more limited.

On June 26, 2026, Dr. Yajing Zhang and her team at Beijing GoBroad Boren Hospital issued China's first in-hospital prescription of belantamab mafodotin for a patient with relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma.

Belantamab mafodotin is a BCMA-targeted antibody-drug conjugate (ADC). It recognizes BCMA on the surface of myeloma cells and delivers its cytotoxic payload into the tumor cell. Unlike CAR-T therapy, it does not require collection, ex vivo manufacturing, and reinfusion of a patient's or donor's T cells, offering a different treatment pathway for selected patients.

Dr. Zhang also emphasized that a newly available drug is not automatically suitable for every patient. Eye examinations are needed before treatment, and the cornea, vision, platelet count, infection risk, and other safety parameters require close monitoring during therapy. Careful, standardized management is essential to balance efficacy and safety.

For patients whose myeloma has relapsed after multiple lines of treatment — including some who have already received CAR-T — the arrival of this therapy means not simply “one more drug,” but another option within an increasingly complex treatment pathway. (Source: Beijing GoBroad Boren Hospital)

China-Developed CAR-T Research Opens a New Investigational Direction for Relapsed/Refractory T-ALL

At the 2026 European Hematology Association (EHA) Congress, the Institute of Hematology & Blood Diseases Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, together with Dr. Jing Pan's team at Beijing GoBroad Hospital, presented new findings from an original nanobody-based, dual-epitope NbCD5 CAR-T program building on earlier research published in Nature Medicine.

Clinical data showed that the new dual-epitope CD5 CAR-T cells reached peak expansion earlier in vivo and were associated with a shorter duration of cytokine release syndrome (CRS). In long-term follow-up, no additional deaths due to severe infection were reported.

The importance of this work lies in its attempt to address a long-standing safety challenge in CAR-T therapy for T-cell malignancies: how to preserve antitumor activity while reducing the risk of serious infections and other complications.

The study reflects how China-based research teams are developing new solutions around real clinical challenges and may offer another investigational direction for patients with relapsed/refractory T-ALL in the future. (Source: Hematology News)

From “CAR-T Is Available” to “CAR-T Is Delivered as Standardized Care”

CAR-T cell therapy has become an important treatment option for relapsed/refractory hematologic malignancies. As more products receive regulatory approval, clinical pathways become more standardized, and supportive policies continue to develop, CAR-T is gradually moving from a frontier technology into broader routine clinical practice.

Recently, GoBroad Chunfu Institute of Hematology & Oncology completed the required institutional filing for six NMPA-approved CAR-T products, covering established targets including CD19 and BCMA and supporting treatment across several relapsed/refractory hematologic malignancies.

GoBroad Shanghai Zhaxin Hospital and GoBroad Shanghai Liquan Hospital have also introduced multiple approved CAR-T products into clinical practice, providing standardized treatment services for patients who meet the approved indications.

CAR-T treatment is much more than a single cell infusion. It is a full-course process that includes indication assessment, bridging therapy when needed, cell collection and infusion, monitoring and management of complications such as cytokine release syndrome (CRS) and immune effector cell-associated neurotoxicity syndrome (ICANS), and long-term follow-up and infection management. Each step can affect the final treatment outcome.

In recent years, GoBroad hospitals have continued to strengthen their full-course CAR-T management systems. Through multidisciplinary collaboration, they aim to provide patients with more standardized and safer support throughout treatment. (Sources: GoBroad Chunfu Institute of Hematology & Oncology; GoBroad Shanghai Zhaxin Hospital)

More Oncology Specialists Join Shanghai GoBroad Cancer Hospital

Alongside new drugs and technologies, access to experienced specialists can also make a meaningful difference for patients.

Recently, colorectal cancer specialist Professor Xinxiang Li and his team joined Shanghai GoBroad Cancer Hospital, Affiliated to China Pharmaceutical University. Their work will focus on colorectal cancer specialty development, clinical care, and clinical research, helping provide patients with more standardized and continuous specialist services.

Thoracic surgery specialist Professor Qun Wang has also joined Shanghai GoBroad Cancer Hospital, Affiliated to China Pharmaceutical University, further strengthening the hospital's thoracic oncology program and expanding access to specialized, individualized care for patients with thoracic tumors. (Source: Shanghai GoBroad Cancer Hospital)

Every newly approved medicine, original research program, specialist appointment, and improvement in the care system helps move treatment forward.

These developments may not immediately change every patient's current treatment plan. But over time, they can broaden the range of available options, improve the quality and continuity of care, and create more possibilities for what comes next.

It is important to remember that every new drug and new technology has specific approved indications and eligibility criteria. Whether a treatment is appropriate should be assessed by a specialist based on the disease type and stage, previous treatments, overall health, and relevant test results.

We will continue to follow new drugs, technologies, and research developments in hematology and oncology and share the updates that may matter most to patients and families.