India Pharma Outlook Team | Tuesday, 06 October 2026
Epcoritamab DLBCL treatment is entering a potentially important new phase after AbbVie and Genmab reported positive Phase 3 results for their bispecific antibody in newly diagnosed diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL).
In the EPCORE DLBCL-2 trial, adding epcoritamab to R-CHOP reduced the risk of disease progression or death by 51 percent versus R-CHOP alone.
The companies are now preparing to engage global regulators.
The bigger implication, however, extends beyond the headline efficacy number: the results could push epcoritamab from later-line lymphoma treatment toward frontline use.
Its fixed-duration design raises questions about how bispecific therapies could be incorporated into future treatment pathways and accessed in markets such as India.
Epcoritamab is a T-cell-engaging bispecific antibody designed to bind CD3 on T cells and CD20 on B cells, directing T-cell activity against malignant B cells.
Until now, its established role has largely centered on relapsed or refractory lymphoma settings. It is approved for certain lymphoma indications in more than 65 countries and is being co-developed by AbbVie and Genmab.
The new Phase 3 result is significant because EPCORE DLBCL-2 tested the drug in newly diagnosed patients.
In the primary population with an International Prognostic Index of 3–5, epcoritamab plus R-CHOP reduced the risk of progression or death by 51 percent, with a hazard ratio of 0.49 and a P value below 0.0001.
The same 51 percent reduction was seen across the broader IPI 2–5 population. That potentially expands the role of bispecific antibody therapy from treating disease after relapse to influencing the frontline DLBCL treatment strategy.
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Another important part of the result is the treatment design. Patients received six cycles of epcoritamab plus R-CHOP, followed by two cycles of epcoritamab alone. The control arm received six cycles of R-CHOP followed by two cycles of rituximab.
This makes the study relevant to the broader development of fixed-duration cancer treatment. Rather than simply adding a bispecific antibody to an existing regimen indefinitely. AbbVie and Genmab are testing a defined treatment period around the chemotherapy backbone.
For pharmaceutical developers, that raises a wider question: can bispecific antibodies deliver durable disease control while remaining part of a time-limited treatment strategy?
The answer will depend on further data, including overall survival, complete remission, and other secondary outcomes that have not yet been fully reported.
The latest result also adds another layer to the company's broader epcoritamab DLBCL treatment strategy.
In June, AbbVie reported positive Phase 3 results for epcoritamab plus lenalidomide in relapsed or refractory DLBCL, showing a 60 percent reduction in the risk of progression or death in that setting.
Taken together, the studies show the companies testing epcoritamab across different lines of lymphoma treatment rather than positioning it around a single patient population.
Publicly available Indian oncology information indicates that epcoritamab did not have Indian marketing approval as of August 2026, despite approvals for certain indications across numerous other countries.
If frontline use eventually receives regulatory approval internationally, access in India would involve more than drug availability.
Epcoritamab can cause serious cytokine release syndrome and neurological complications, with monitoring and specialized treatment capacity potentially important during initial dosing.
Therefore, the AbbVie-Genmab result is not simply another positive oncology trial. It raises a larger question around whether bispecific antibodies can move earlier in the DLBCL treatment pathway, whether fixed-duration regimens can become more established, and how emerging therapies can be made accessible in markets such as India.
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