The research and development (R&D) capabilities of Chinese pharmaceutical companies are going from strength to strength year after year.

Last year, the immuno-oncology drug Loqtorzi, developed by Junshi Biosciences, was approved in the United States. It became the first Chinese immuno-oncology drug to be approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). While Chinese anti-PD-L1/PD-1-targeted immuno-oncology drugs have been approved within China, this is the first time they have crossed the FDA approval threshold.

This year, BeiGene’s immuno-oncology drug Tevimbra was approved by the FDA. Another Chinese drugmaker, Innovent, is also seeking FDA approval for its own immuno-oncolo