The 21st Shanghai International Breast Cancer Symposium (SIBCS) was held in Shanghai on October 16–17, 2026. The meeting brought together experts in breast cancer from across China for in-depth discussions on comprehensive breast cancer management and precision, stratified treatment.

On October 9, 2026, a research team from Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University, the Taikang Center for Life and Medical Sciences at Wuhan University, the National Cancer Center, and the Cancer Hospital of the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences published a review article online in Signal Transduction and Targeted Therapy (impact factor: 81.2), entitled “Metabolic immune checkpoints (MICs) in cancer: from molecular mechanisms to challenges and opportunities in clinical translation.” The review was co-corresponding-authored by Academician Qianjun Xu, Professor Xiehua Xie, and Professor Yechun Yi. It systematically examines the molecular mechanisms through which tumor metabolic reprogramming drives immune evasion and proposes a theoretical framework centered on metabolic immune checkpoints (MICs), offering a new conceptual basis for understanding immunotherapy resistance and developing combined metabolic and immunotherapeutic strategies.

The 18th Shanghai Breast Reconstruction Conference was held in Shanghai on October 14–15, 2026. The meeting brought together renowned experts from the United States, France, Australia, Germany, the United Kingdom, and other countries and regions to share advanced experience and the latest research in breast reconstruction, specialist training, and interdisciplinary collaboration.

The 18th Shanghai Breast Reconstruction Conference, jointly organized by the Shanghai Anti-Cancer Association and the Shanghai Foundation for Cancer Prevention and Treatment, guided by the Breast Cancer Committee of the Chinese Anti-Cancer Association, and hosted by Fudan University Shanghai Cancer Center, was held in Shanghai from October 10 to 14, 2026. Under the theme “Global Wisdom, Collaborative Practice,” the conference embraced the principles of innovation, cooperation, and development, presenting a high-level, international, and multidisciplinary academic event.

As more patients with breast cancer seek both oncologic cure and preservation of breast appearance, breast-conserving surgery and breast reconstruction have become increasingly important components of comprehensive breast cancer care. The challenge is to improve aesthetic outcomes and quality of life while maintaining oncologic safety, ensuring effective local control, and minimizing long-term risks. This requires individualized, multidisciplinary surgical decision-making. At the 19th National Breast Cancer Conference and the 21st Shanghai International Breast Cancer Symposium (SIBCS), Professor Liang Huang of Fudan University Shanghai Cancer Center spoke with Oncology Frontier about balancing oncologic safety and aesthetic outcomes in breast-conserving surgery and reconstruction, selecting techniques for Chinese women with distinct breast anatomy, weighing implant-based against autologous tissue reconstruction, and the roles of multidisciplinary team (MDT) collaboration and patient communication.

Every October, Breast Cancer Awareness Month, widely known as “Pink Ribbon Month,” returns to raise awareness. Supported by healthcare organizations and public interest groups around the world, this initiative aims to improve public understanding of breast cancer, promote early screening, diagnosis, and treatment, and highlight the importance of long-term quality of life for survivors. With rapid advances in systemic therapies and surgical techniques, the goals of breast cancer treatment have evolved beyond simply prolonging survival to include quality of life and a sense of bodily wholeness. As an important component of comprehensive breast cancer care, breast reconstruction can restore physical appearance while also having a profound impact on patients’ psychological well-being, family relationships, and social functioning.

On October 14, 2026, the 17th World ADC San Diego conference, currently taking place in San Diego, USA, announced this year's World ADC Awards. Iza-bren (lunvenlatug vedotin; Yizekang®, BL-B01D1), a first-in-class, new-concept bispecific antibody–drug conjugate (ADC) independently developed by Sichuan Biokin Pharmaceutical and currently the world's first and only approved EGFR×HER3 bispecific ADC, was named Best ADC Clinical Impact Winner.

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) represents a major global health burden, with unresectable HCC (uHCC) accounting for a substantial proportion of cases and carrying a poor prognosis. Pivotal phase III clinical trials in uHCC have generally excluded patients with poor prognostic factors, including impaired liver function (e.g., Child-Pugh class B/C), poor performance status (ECOG performance status [PS] >1), or main trunk portal vein tumor thrombosis (Vp4). In clinical practice, these patients account for as much as 65% of the uHCC population. In recent years, combination immunotherapy has become a standard first-line treatment approach for uHCC. The HIMALAYA study established the first-line value of the STRIDE regimen, comprising a single priming dose of tremelimumab followed by maintenance durvalumab. However, HIMALAYA likewise enrolled only patients with Child-Pugh class A liver function, ECOG PS 0–1, and no Vp4 involvement. Because patients with these poor prognostic factors have been underrepresented in global phase III trials, high-level evidence to guide treatment decisions remains limited, making clinical management particularly challenging.