ImmunityBio, Inc. ((IBRX), a commercial-stage immunotherapy company, today announced preliminary results from a new health economic analysis demonstrating that ANKTIVA® (nogapendekin alfa inbakicept-pmln; NAI) plus Bacillus Calmette–Guérin (BCG) achieved a lower cost per sustained complete responder compared to TAR-200 in patients with BCG-unresponsive non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer carcinoma in situ ± papillary disease (NMIBC CIS). The findings were presented at the International Society for Pharmacoeconomics and Outcomes Research (ISPOR) 2026, May 17–20, 2026, at the Pennsylvania Convention Center in Philadelphia, by Ruchika Talwar, M.D., Medical Director and Assistant Professor Urologic Oncology at Vanderbilt Health.

The authors developed a cost-consequence model comparing ANKTIVA plus BCG, using data from the QUILT-3.032 study, with TAR-200, using data from the SunRISe-1 trial, and evaluated both clinical and economic outcomes in a U.S. Medicare population. A multi-state Markov model incorporating key NMIBC health states and clinical outcomes derived from a matched-adjusted indirect comparison (MAIC) of the two trials was used to assess costs associated with treatment acquisition, administration, healthcare resource utilization, radical cystectomy, and mortality.

Key findings include:

  • Cost per cystectomy avoided: ANKTIVA plus BCG demonstrated savings of $109,622 at Year 1, $151,438 at Year 2, and $60,393 at Year 3 compared to TAR-200
  • Cost per cystectomy-free month: Savings of $9,370 at Year 1, $6,144 at Year 2, and $1,520 at Year 3
  • Cost per complete responder: Savings of $313,775 at Year 1 and $282,013 at Year 2

Cost reductions were primarily driven by lower drug acquisition and administration costs, based on complete response rates derived from an indirect treatment comparison—49.6% for ANKTIVA plus BCG versus 45.9% for TAR-200.

The authors concluded that ANKTIVA plus BCG offers direct cost savings across measurable clinical outcomes for patients with BCG-unresponsive NMIBC CIS compared to TAR-200 in a U.S. Medicare population, with savings persisting across all three years of the analysis.

"This health economic analysis reflects our dual mission of developing breakthrough immunotherapies that meaningfully extend lives, while ensuring these innovations are accessible within the broader healthcare landscape. By analyzing the rigorous economic efficiencies of our treatments, we are better positioned to ensure more patients can receive the most innovative and accessible cancer treatments available today," said Patrick Soon-Shiong, M.D., Founder, Executive Chairman and Global Chief Scientific and Medical Officer of ImmunityBio. "These results solidify the potential value of ANKTIVA plus BCG in delivering durable responses while reducing costs to the Medicare healthcare system."

"These findings reinforce the importance of aligning clinical innovation with both economic value and patient preferences," said Ruchika Talwar, M.D., Medical Director and Assistant Professor Urologic Oncology at Vanderbilt Health. "In BCG-unresponsive NMIBC, treatment decisions are not solely about response rates; they are about durability, quality of life, and ensuring patients have access to therapies that are both effective and sustainable within the healthcare system."