Immuno-Oncology Market Forecast to Reach $170 Billion by 2032 Amid Pipeline Expansion

The immuno-oncology market is forecast to grow from $65.22 billion in 2025 to $170.19 billion by 2032, fueled by checkpoint inhibitors, CAR-T cell therapy, and cancer vaccines. The broader oncology market is projected to nearly triple from $279.98 billion to $748.17 billion by 2035, with North America commanding a 43% market share.

Targeted therapy remains the fastest-growing segment within the $335.2 billion cancer drugs market projected for 2033, as personalized medicine reshapes treatment paradigms.

Oncolytics Biotech Inc. recently announced its decision to focus on registrational programs in anal and colorectal cancer, concluding enrollment in the GOBLET gastrointestinal study after generating sufficient clinical and translational data to chart a clear path toward FDA approval. The promising efficacy signal in GOBLET Cohort 4 has defined a clear registrational path for pelareorep in second-line and later squamous cell anal cancer, a setting where available therapies offer only limited benefit to patients. Oncolytics expects to meet with the FDA in mid-April to align on study design, and believes a clinical trial of well under 100 subjects will be sufficient to secure approval in this rare cancer indication.

With sufficient cash on hand to execute near-term milestones, the company expects to avoid immediate material dilution, redirecting capital from the GOBLET cohorts toward its highest-conviction registration programs. The CEO stated that GOBLET has done its job successfully and the company now knows where pelareorep can make the greatest impact for patients and where approval can be pursued most efficiently.

The registration push builds on pelareorep's recent Fast Track Designation from the FDA for second-line KRAS-mutant microsatellite-stable (MSS) metastatic colorectal cancer. Clinical data showed pelareorep combined with standard chemotherapy and Avastin achieved a 33% response rate versus roughly 10% with chemotherapy and Avastin, while median overall survival reached 27 months versus 11.2 months with standard treatment.

KRAS-mutant MSS colorectal cancer represents one of the hardest-to-treat populations, with limited options after first-line treatment fails. The global market for second-line treatment in this patient group runs between $3 billion and $5 billion annually. The company plans to launch a controlled study with the first clinical site activating in March and interim data expected by year-end 2026.

Pelareorep is also delivering strong results in anal cancer, where third-line patients achieved a 29% response rate with the median duration of response lasting around 17 months in a setting with no FDA-approved treatments. In second-line or later patients, the 30% response rate more than doubled the benchmark for the FDA-approved immunotherapy.

The company continues strengthening its leadership, having recently appointed John McAdory as EVP of Strategy and Operations and Yujun Wu as Head of Biostatistics. The CEO and Chief Business Officer both joined from Ambrx Biopharma, which sold to Johnson & Johnson for $2 billion in 2024.

ImmunityBio recently announced a partnership with Accord Healthcare to expand European access to ANKTIVA for bladder cancer patients across 33 countries. ANKTIVA achieved a 71% complete response rate in BCG-unresponsive non-muscle invasive bladder cancer, with approvals spanning the U.S., EU, UK, and Saudi Arabia. The company continues to advance its IL-15 receptor agonist platform.

CRISPR Therapeutics provided a business update reporting encouraging clinical data from its allogeneic CAR-T candidate, zugocabtagene geleucel (zugo-cel), in both autoimmune disease and oncology indications. CASGEVY generated $116 million in full-year 2025 revenue, with patient initiations increasing nearly three-fold year-over-year.