Whitehawk Therapeutics Presents PTK7 as Durable Target for NSCLC
News related to:Whitehawk Therapeutics, Inc · 1 min read
Whitehawk Therapeutics, a clinical-stage oncology therapeutics company, has presented new real-world analyses at the 2026 World Conference on Lung Cancer (WCLC) in Seoul, South Korea. The findings support the use of PTK7 as a durable ADC (antibody drug conjugate) target in EGFR wild-type non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).
The analyses revealed that PTK7 expression remained stable following standard-of-care (SoC) therapies, including chemotherapy and immunotherapy. This stability is particularly significant as it suggests that PTK7 may remain available for targeted ADC therapies even after multiple lines of treatment. The data also showed that PTK7 expression was consistent across different molecular subgroups of NSCLC, including those with and without other actionable genomic alterations (AGA).
The company's next-generation PTK7-directed ADC, HWK-007, is currently in Phase 1 clinical development. The findings presented at WCLC reinforce the scientific rationale for this therapeutic approach. Specifically, the data indicate that PTK7 expression was not independently associated with real-world overall survival or progression-free survival in patients with advanced EGFR wild-type lung adenocarcinoma. This suggests that PTK7 may serve as a target-engagement biomarker rather than a marker of prognosis.
Lisberg, MD, Associate Professor of Medicine at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA.
Whitehawk Therapeutics is applying advanced technologies to established tumor biology to develop improved cancer treatments. The company's portfolio includes HWK-007, HWK-016, and HWK-206, all ADCs engineered to overcome the limitations of first-generation predecessors. These assets are in-licensed from WuXi Biologics under an exclusive development and global commercialization agreement.
The findings presented at WCLC were conducted as part of a collaboration between Whitehawk and Tempus AI. The posters will be accessible on the Presentations page of the Investors & News section of the Company's website at www.whitehawktx.com.