Insights from ASCO 2026
Key downloads and clinical trends from the world of oncology.
Could the next healthcare breakthrough happen outside the lab?
Scientific innovation is transforming how we treat disease, but the next true breakthrough won’t happen in a lab alone.
Something extraordinary is happening in medicine.
For the first time in 16 years, obesity has overtaken oncology as the highest-value therapeutic area for new drugs in advanced development.¹
Just three years ago, obesity accounted for barely 1% of the estimated future sales of these medicines. Today, it accounts for a quarter, compared with 20% for oncology, according to Deloitte's recent analysis of 20 leading biopharmaceutical companies.¹
It's a remarkable shift. And the science behind it is opening-up possibilities that extend far beyond weight.
A whole new weight of evidence
We've all heard the old advice about obesity. Eat less. Move more. Try harder.
But science has long established that obesity is far more complex than a question of willpower.²
What's particularly exciting now is how far that understanding is taking us. Medicines originally developed to manage blood sugar are transforming obesity treatment. Certain GLP-1-based treatments have already demonstrated benefits for cardiovascular and kidney health, metabolic liver disease and obstructive sleep apnoea, revealing just how closely metabolic health is connected to the rest of the body.³⁻⁶
Science is increasingly revealing how interconnected our health really is. Yet the healthcare experience can still feel remarkably disconnected.
And now, researchers are exploring an even more unexpected connection: cancer.
At the 2026 annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO), researchers presented an observational study involving more than 10,000 people with cancer who initiated GLP-1 medicines after diagnosis. They found that GLP-1 use was associated with a lower likelihood of progression to metastatic disease in certain cancers.⁷ Importantly, this was an observational study, not proof that GLP-1 medicines prevent cancer progression or recurrence or treat cancer. Further clinical trials are needed.
It's early days, but the questions scientists are asking are fascinating. Medicines that began their story in diabetes are now prompting research into conditions far beyond blood sugar and body weight.
Science is increasingly revealing how interconnected our health really is. Yet the healthcare experience can still feel remarkably disconnected.
When science meets real life
It's 11 pm. Something doesn't feel quite right.
You Google your symptoms. Then Google them again. Before long, you've doom-scrolled through alarming possibilities, watched strangers explain what worked for them and asked AI whether it's something serious. By the time you see a doctor, you might already have a diagnosis in mind. Or a treatment. Or a hundred questions you don't quite know how to ask. Sound familiar?
Healthcare doesn't begin and end in the consultation room anymore. Telehealth, digital services and AI are changing how we access care and health information. But more technology doesn't automatically mean a better healthcare experience.
And while science is revealing how closely our health conditions are connected, healthcare itself can still operate in silos.
For someone living with a chronic condition, there's the reality of appointments, treatments, questions and setbacks, all happening alongside family, work and everything else life throws at us.
And while science is revealing how closely our health conditions are connected, healthcare itself can still operate in silos. You might see a cardiologist for your heart, a nephrologist for your kidneys and another clinician for your metabolic health. Each may provide excellent care, but coordinating everything can still fall to you.
What if the next breakthrough isn't simply understanding how these conditions connect, but creating healthcare that connects around the person living with them?
That means more than connecting medical records, specialists and digital services. It means rethinking how we design healthcare experiences around people's lives.
Making it easier to navigate treatment options, access trusted information and receive support between appointments. Improving health literacy by making complex medical information easier to understand and giving people the confidence to make informed decisions about their health. Designing services that remove barriers rather than adding to them.
And importantly, recognising that one approach won't work for everyone.
That's where radical empathy matters. Listening without assumptions. Understanding what someone has already been through. Recognising that the best medical advice in the world means little if it doesn't connect with the person receiving it.
Across Australia and New Zealand, different healthcare systems, cultural perspectives and lived experiences shape how people seek and receive care. For Māori and Pacific peoples, and culturally diverse communities across Australia, that means working with communities to understand what matters to them, rather than assuming the same approach will work for everyone.
And sometimes the barriers are deeply personal. For someone who's spent years struggling with their weight, even the thought of another conversation about eating less and moving more can be exhausting.
That's where radical empathy matters. Listening without assumptions. Understanding what someone has already been through. Recognising that the best medical advice in the world means little if it doesn't connect with the person receiving it.
And it's where meaningful communication, creativity and a deeper understanding of human behaviour have a critical role to play. Not simply explaining the science, but helping turn scientific advances into experiences, services and support that people can genuinely benefit from.
The breakthrough beyond the breakthrough
A breakthrough in medicine and a breakthrough in someone's life aren't always the same thing.
One might take decades of research and rigorous clinical trials.
The other might be someone finally feeling comfortable asking for help. A clinician who sees the whole person, not just one condition. A digital service that makes accessing care easier. Or a healthcare system that makes effective treatments more affordable and accessible.
For those of us working across healthcare, from pharmaceutical companies and healthcare professionals to technology providers, policymakers and communicators, this is an opportunity and a responsibility.
To think beyond individual products, campaigns and consultations. To design around real human needs, connect the different parts of the healthcare journey and measure success not just by what we deliver, but by the difference it makes in people's lives.
None of this replaces scientific progress. It's how we help people benefit from it.
Perhaps the next healthcare breakthrough won't happen in a laboratory alone.
Perhaps it will happen when we put humanity at the heart of healthcare.
References
1. Deloitte (2026). Navigating the GLP-1 boom: Measuring the return from pharmaceutical innovation.
2. World Health Organization. Obesity and overweight.
https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/obesity-and-overweight
3. Lincoff AM, et al. (2023). Semaglutide and Cardiovascular Outcomes in Obesity without Diabetes. New England Journal of Medicine. 389:2221–2232.
https://doi.org/10.1056/NEJMoa2307563
4. Perkovic V, et al. (2024). Effects of Semaglutide on Chronic Kidney Disease in Patients with Type 2 Diabetes. New England Journal of Medicine. 391:109–121.
https://doi.org/10.1056/NEJMoa2403347
5. Sanyal AJ, et al. (2025). Phase 3 Trial of Semaglutide in Metabolic Dysfunction–Associated Steatohepatitis. New England Journal of Medicine. 392:2089–2099.
https://doi.org/10.1056/NEJMoa2413258
6. Malhotra A, et al. (2024). Tirzepatide for the Treatment of Obstructive Sleep Apnea and Obesity. New England Journal of Medicine. 391:1193–1205.
https://doi.org/10.1056/NEJMoa2404881
7. Orland MD, et al. (2026). Can GLP-1 receptor agonists mitigate cancer progression? A propensity-matched analysis across seven solid tumors. Journal of Clinical Oncology. 44(suppl 16): Abstract 3143.
