camrelizumab

Overview

Camrelizumab is a therapeutic monoclonal antibody used in cancer immunotherapy. It is a programmed cell death 1 (PD-1) inhibitor, meaning it blocks the PD-1 immune checkpoint pathway that normally dampens T-cell activity. By inhibiting this checkpoint, camrelizumab can enhance antitumor immune responses and is therefore studied across multiple solid tumors, often in combination with other systemic therapies.

In recent biomedical research, camrelizumab has been investigated as both an adjuvant treatment after surgery and as part of combination regimens with agents such as apatinib, capecitabine, and oxaliplatin. These studies reflect its role as a checkpoint inhibitor in disease settings including hepatocellular carcinoma, gastric or gastro-oesophageal junction adenocarcinoma, metastatic clear cell renal cell carcinoma, and locoregionally advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma.

Focus of Latest Publications

Recent publications on camrelizumab have focused on its use as a programmed cell death 1 checkpoint inhibitor in combination regimens and in adjuvant settings across several solid tumors. In locoregionally advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma, one study evaluated the cost-effectiveness of adjuvant camrelizumab from the perspective of the Chinese healthcare system, reflecting growing interest in its potential role after initial treatment. In hepatocellular carcinoma, camrelizumab has also been examined as adjuvant therapy after curative hepatectomy in patients at high risk of recurrence, with retrospective multicenter data addressing its efficacy and safety in this setting.

Several recent studies have assessed camrelizumab combined with the antiangiogenic agent apatinib. A phase II trial investigated camrelizumab plus apatinib in refractory chordoma, a disease with limited treatment options. Another single-arm phase 2 study evaluated the same combination in immune checkpoint inhibitor-naive patients with metastatic clear cell renal cell carcinoma after first-line tyrosine-kinase inhibitor failure. In advanced hepatocellular carcinoma, a quantitative systems pharmacology study explored predictive biomarkers and dose optimization for camrelizumab plus apatinib, aiming to identify which patients may benefit most and how regimen adjustments might affect efficacy and safety.

Camrelizumab has also been studied in gastrointestinal malignancies. A randomized phase 3 trial compared camrelizumab plus CAPOX, with camrelizumab-based maintenance strategies, against CAPOX alone as initial treatment for gastric or gastro-oesophageal junction adenocarcinoma. Across these publications, camrelizumab is being investigated both as a standalone adjuvant immunotherapy and as part of combination strategies with capecitabine, oxaliplatin, and apatinib, with the overall emphasis on efficacy, safety, patient selection, and treatment optimization.

Key Publications

May Cost-effectiveness of adjuvant therapy with camrelizumab in high-risk locoregionally advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma: from the perspective of the Chinese healthcare system. (Annals of medicine, 2026, PMID 42130296): "This study aimed to explore the cost-effectiveness of adjuvant immunotherapy with camrelizumab for patients with LA-NPC from the perspective of the Chinese healthcare system."
May Efficacy and Safety of Camrelizumab Plus Apatinib in Patients With Refractory Chordoma: A Phase II Clinical Trial. (Journal of clinical oncology : official journal of the American Society of Clinical Oncology, 2026, PMID 42127327): "Combination of immune checkpoint inhibitors and antiangiogenic drugs has altered the landscape of cancer treatment but has rarely been investigated in chordoma."
Apr Camrelizumab plus apatinib for immune checkpoint inhibitor-naive patients with metastatic clear cell renal cell carcinoma after first-line tyrosine kinase inhibitor treatment failure: a single-arm phase 2 trial. (BMC medicine, 2026, PMID 42026573): "This study evaluated the efficacy and safety of camrelizumab plus apatinib in this setting."
May Adjuvant camrelizumab for hepatocellular carcinoma patients with high risk of recurrence after curative hepatectomy: a retrospective multicenter study. (European journal of gastroenterology & hepatology, 2026, PMID 41870909): "This study aims to evaluate the efficacy and safety of camrelizumab (a PD-1 inhibitor) as adjuvant therapy in these patients."
Apr Camrelizumab plus CAPOX with camrelizumab based maintenance versus CAPOX alone as initial treatment for gastric or gastro-oesophageal junction adenocarcinoma: randomised phase 3 trial. (BMJ (Clinical research ed.), 2026, PMID 41819560): "To compare camrelizumab plus capecitabine and oxaliplatin followed by camrelizumab plus apatinib (camre+CAPOX followed by camre+apa), CAPOX alone, and camrelizumab plus CAPOX followed by camrelizumab (camre+CAPOX followed by camre) as initial treatment for gastric or gastro-oesophageal junction adenocarcinoma."
Apr Identification of predictive biomarkers and dose optimization for camrelizumab combined with apatinib in the treatment of advanced hepatocellular carcinoma: a quantitative systems pharmacology approach. (Frontiers in immunology, 2026, PMID 41782865): "The combination of camrelizumab and apatinib represents a promising treatment strategy for patients with advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (aHCC)."