China's New Gout Drug Approved; Phase-III Results of the US Cancer Vaccine Announced
On August 20, 2026, the National Medical Products Administration approved Anfuliqita Monoclonal Antibody Injection (subcutaneous injection; brand name Yisaina), a Class-1 innovative drug filed by 3SBio (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. The new drug is indicated for acute attacks of gouty arthritis in adults with contraindications, intolerance, or inadequate response to nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and/or colchicine, and who are unsuitable for repeated steroid use—adding a precise treatment option for clinically refractory acute gout.
Gout is a highly prevalent metabolic chronic disease in China, caused by long-term elevation of blood uric acid. Acute attacks present with red, swollen, severely painful joints, badly impairing quality of life. Clinicians have long relied on NSAIDs, colchicine, and glucocorticoids, but these have clear limits in patients with combined liver/kidney dysfunction, underlying gastrointestinal disease, or frequent attacks—leaving an unmet need.
Anfuliqita is a recombinant humanized anti-IL-1β monoclonal antibody. By targeting and blocking IL-1β, the core inflammatory mediator in acute gout attacks, it suppresses the inflammatory cascade at the source. Its mechanism is precise, designed specifically for patients in whom conventional therapy is limited, further expanding the acute-gout treatment toolkit.
In recent years China has led the world in innovative gout-drug development. In 2025, Jinsai Pharmaceutical's IL-1β-targeted Fuxinqibai Monoclonal Antibody was approved. Earlier this year, Hengrui's linuolex sodium and other next-generation URAT1 inhibitors were also approved.
On August 19, 2026, a personalized vaccine jointly developed by the US firms Moderna and Merck reduced melanoma recurrence in a large late-stage trial, raising hopes for treating this deadliest skin cancer.
The companies announced that combining the vaccine with Merck's immunotherapy Keytruda more effectively prevented cancer recurrence after surgical removal and delayed spread to other sites, compared with immunotherapy alone. Over 1,000 patients with melanoma participated in this mRNA cancer-therapy trial. The vaccine may be approved as early as 2027.
This is good news for cancer patients, but some oncology experts urge caution: the full results have not been published or peer-reviewed; they have so far been disclosed only by the developers.
Cancer research often produces sensational headlines, only for later results to disappoint. Caution is therefore warranted. In the self-media age, beware of lay outlets using sensational headlines and hype that raise patients' and families' expectations unrealistically—sometimes brewing tragedy.
New drug-development results are always heartening. Many human diseases require innovative drugs, and researchers on the front lines of drug development have made major contributions to human health. We look forward to more breakthrough successes.