Sensei Biotherapeutics Soars 14% on Encouraging Trial Results

On March 28, 2025, Sensei Biotherapeutics' stock price was 33.18 in pre-market trading.

Sensei Biotherapeutics has reported encouraging preliminary results from its Phase 1/2 trial of solnerstotug, a conditionally active antibody targeting VISTA. The drug demonstrated significant clinical activity in PD-(L)1 resistant tumors, achieving a 14% overall response rate, which is nearly triple the historical rechallenge rates of ≤5%.

Key findings include one durable complete response in Merkel Cell Carcinoma (MCC) and two partial responses in MCC and MSI-H Colorectal Cancer patients. The drug also showed a 62% disease control rate among 21 evaluable PD-(L)1 resistant patients, with all patients experiencing tumor shrinkage remaining on treatment. The safety profile was favorable, with no dose-limiting toxicities and mostly Grade 1-2 adverse events.

Sensei Biotherapeutics plans to initiate Phase 2 studies in Q1 2026, subject to capital raising. The company's explicit mention of needing to raise capital before initiating Phase 2 in Q1 2026 introduces uncertainty around the program's advancement timeline. The promising efficacy data, especially in Merkel Cell Carcinoma and MSI-H colorectal cancer, could potentially attract partnership interest from larger oncology players seeking novel checkpoint targets beyond the crowded PD-1 space.