Immunotherapy Shows Clinical Benefit in Advanced Colorectal Cancer as First-Line Treatment

Apr 22, 2026

The NEOPRISM-CRC clinical trial, led by researchers from UCL and UCLH, demonstrates that immunotherapy administered before surgery provides clinical benefit as first-line treatment for patients with advanced colorectal cancer. Patients with a specific type of bowel cancer who received a short course of pre-surgery immunotherapy remained cancer-free after nearly three years of follow-up. The trial used immunotherapy instead of traditional post-operative chemotherapy, offering an important alternative treatment approach for a disease that is increasingly affecting younger patients. The results suggest pre-surgery immunotherapy could replace chemotherapy for certain bowel cancer cases.

NEOPRISM-CRC trial results and patient outcomes

▪The NEOPRISM-CRC trial involved a short course of immunotherapy administered before surgery.
▪Patients with a specific type of bowel cancer treated with pre-surgery immunotherapy in the NEOPRISM-CRC trial remained cancer-free after almost three years of follow-up.
▪The NEOPRISM-CRC clinical trial was led by a team from UCL and UCLH.

Shift from post-operative chemotherapy to pre-surgery immunotherapy

▪The NEOPRISM-CRC trial used pre-surgery immunotherapy instead of post-operative chemotherapy for treating a specific type of bowel cancer.
▪Immunotherapy administered before surgery showed clinical benefit in advanced colorectal cancer as first-line treatment.

Perspective of UCL and UCLH research team

▪The NEOPRISM-CRC trial demonstrates that immunotherapy offers a first-line treatment alternative to chemotherapy for advanced colorectal cancer.
▪Pre-surgery immunotherapy can replace post-operative chemotherapy for certain bowel cancer patients according to the NEOPRISM-CRC trial results.