Genmab epcoritamab shows high response rates in elderly DLBCL patients
Genmab has reported clinical data from two studies evaluating epcoritamab in elderly patients with newly diagnosed diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL), a population frequently excluded from standard curative chemotherapy due to age or comorbidities. The results, presented at the European Hematology Association Congress in Stockholm on 13 June 2026, suggest the subcutaneous T-cell engaging antibody can deliver meaningful responses where treatment options have historically been limited.
In the Phase 2 EPCORE DLBCL-3 study, epcoritamab monotherapy produced an overall response rate (ORR) of 67% and a complete response (CR) rate of 58% among 66 evaluable patients. The median age of participants was 82.5 years, and 94% had three or more comorbid conditions, making this one of the frailer populations studied in first-line lymphoma trials to date. Median progression-free survival was 13.0 months, while median overall survival had not been reached at the time of analysis. Strikingly, 92% of evaluable responders achieved minimal residual disease (MRD) negativity. The full results were simultaneously published in The Lancet Haematology.
Combination data
In Arm 8 of the Phase 1b/2 EPCORE NHL-2 study, epcoritamab combined with dose-attenuated R-mini-CHOP produced an ORR of 93% and a CR rate of 86% across 28 patients ineligible for full-dose R-CHOP. At two years, estimated duration of response and duration of complete response rates both stood at 79%, with PFS and OS estimated at 76% and 82% respectively. MRD negativity was achieved in 95% of evaluable patients, including those in high-risk subgroups, and outcomes compared favourably with historical data for R-mini-CHOP alone.
Umberto Vitolo of Candiolo Cancer Institute in Italy, who presented the EPCORE DLBCL-3 findings, noted that epcoritamab's safety profile, including cytokine release syndrome and immune effector cell-associated neurotoxicity syndrome, was "consistent with expected rates in this fragile population." CRS occurred in 71% of patients across EPCORE DLBCL-3, though most events arose during the first cycle. Grade 5 treatment-emergent adverse events occurred in eight patients. In the combination arm, Grade 3 or higher neutropenia was reported in 54% of patients, with serious infections in 33%, reflecting the additive burden of R-mini-CHOP.
Market context and regulatory path
Epcoritamab is already approved as EPKINLY in the US and Japan and as TEPKINLY in the European Union for certain relapsed or refractory lymphoma indications, having received regulatory clearance in more than 65 territories. The drug is co-developed and co-commercialised by Genmab and AbbVie under their broader oncology collaboration.
The first-line elderly DLBCL segment represents a sizeable and underserved opportunity. DLBCL accounts for roughly 25 to 30% of all non-Hodgkin lymphoma cases globally and disproportionately affects older patients. Current standard-of-care regimens are poorly tolerated in this population, and the available alternatives have historically yielded modest outcomes. Bispecific antibodies are emerging as one of the more actively explored approaches in this space, with several companies advancing CD20xCD3 programmes; however, epcoritamab's subcutaneous delivery and fixed-duration dosing schedule are positioned by Genmab as differentiating features for elderly outpatient use.
Genmab and AbbVie are running a Phase 3 randomised trial of epcoritamab in combination with R-CHOP in newly diagnosed DLBCL, which will provide the pivotal dataset needed for a potential label expansion into the broader first-line setting. Readout timing for that study has not been publicly specified. Investors will be watching for whether the Phase 2 MRD and durability signals hold in a randomised, controlled design, and whether regulatory agencies view MRD negativity as an acceptable surrogate endpoint in this indication.