The wide-ranging oncology market covers every area of cancer care, from diagnosis to treatment.
Coming in only after cardiovascular disease, cancer is the second leading cause of death worldwide; unsurprisingly, oncology is one of the biggest sectors in the life science space. With that in mind, biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies alike are working to develop best-in-class therapeutics for the treatment of various cancers, including lung, breast and prostate cancer.
The space is seeing significant advancements with innovative new therapies. As the global oncology market grows, investors who want exposure to companies working to treat cancer should consider taking a look at biotech and pharma companies with a focus on cancer drugs, vaccines and therapies.
This list of the biggest oncology stocks on the NASDAQ was generated using TradingView’s stock screener. The companies are listed in order of market cap, and all figures below were current as of August 19, 2026.
Market cap: US$239.15 billion
Share price: US$442.36
One of the world’s leading independent biotechnology companies, Amgen uses advanced human genetics to develop and manufacture therapeutics targeting oncological diseases, including a range of solid tumors and hematologic malignancies.
Amgen’s lung cancer therapy Imdelltra posted 115 percent year-over-year sales growth in the second quarter, and several of its other cancer treatments including blood cancer drug Blincyto posted double digit growth, which the company attributed to increases in volume.
During the quarter, Imdelltra also gained EU approval for extensive-stage small cell lung cancer and full approval in China.
However, two studies testing a subcutaneous version of Blincyto paused enrollment after the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) placed a partial clinical hold. Amgen says it’s discussing next steps with the agency.
The company’s prostate cancer candidate, xaluritamig, completed enrollment in its XALute Phase 3 trial during Q2, while Amgen’s KRAS inhibitor Lumakras remains in two ongoing Phase 3 studies for colorectal and lung cancer.
2. Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD)
Market cap: US$183.02 billion
Share price: US$147.60
Global biopharmaceutical company Gilead Sciences is in the business of developing breakthrough medicines to prevent and treat serious conditions such as HIV, viral hepatitis and cancer. The company has built up its early oncology pipeline with the acquisition of biotech firm XinThera and its portfolio of small molecule inhibitors targeting PARP1.
One of Gilead’s biggest successes is Yescarta, a CAR-T cell therapy for blood cancer and the first such therapy for certain types of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.
The company also has its breast cancer treatment Trodelvy, which the FDA approved for metastatic triple-negative breast cancer in 2020. Sales of Trodelvy grew sales 26 percent year-over-year in the second quarter of 2026, helped by increased demand. During the period, it received a new US approval as a monotherapy or in combination with Merck & Company’s (NYSE:MRK) immunotherapy Keytruda for certain forms of PD-L1 related breast cancer.
On the other hand, the company disclosed that a Phase 3 trial of Trodelvy in combination with Keytruda for non-small cell lung cancer didn’t meet its primary goal and was discontinued.
Gilead also completed enrollment in a key late-stage trial of anito-cel, an experimental cell therapy for multiple myeloma that the company acquired through its purchase of Arcellx. An FDA decision is expected by December 23, with launch preparations already underway. The company is framing it as a strong contender against the established CAR-T therapies already on the market.
On the pipeline side, an early-stage cancer therapy Gilead picked up through its recent Tubulis acquisition showed encouraging early results in ovarian cancer at this year’s ASCO meeting, and the company is starting a new study for that drug in an earlier-line ovarian cancer population.
Market cap: US$107.83 billion
Share price: US$45.83
Based in France, Sanofi is developing new technologies based on molecular oncology, immuno-oncology and genomic medicine platforms targeting some of the most difficult-to-treat cancers. The company’s oncology strategy encompasses four disease areas: blood cancers, including multiple myeloma; skin cancers; lung cancers; and breast cancer and other hormone-positive cancers.
The company’s oncology news in Q2 2026 centered on the Sarclisa Escena treatment for multiple myeloma, which received its first subcutaneous approvals in the US, EU and Japan. The new formulation is delivered via a wearable, battery-free on-body injector and offers comparable efficacy and safety to the IV version, with less administration time and fewer infusion reactions. A regulatory decision in China is expected in 2027.
Beyond Sarclisa, early-stage work includes a CEACAM5-targeted antibody-drug conjugate and a pan-KRAS inhibitor, both in Phase 1 studies for colorectal cancer, plus a PD1/IL-15 fusion protein in solid tumors that is in Phase 2. The company also licensed an anti-B7H3 NK cell engager from Innate Pharma and continues sourcing oncology candidates through Chinese biotech partnerships.
4. Regeneron Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:REGN)
Market cap: US$86.57 billion
Share price: US$840.84
Biotech leader Regeneron Pharmaceuticals develops and commercializes medicines targeting cancer, pain and a wide variety of diseases, including inflammatory, cardiovascular, metabolic, hematologic and rare diseases.
Regeneron’s two approved cancer drugs are both gaining traction, with Libtayo posting 29 percent year-over-year sales growth in the second quarter, with uptake continuing in its adjuvant cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma indication. Lynozyfic, the company’s BCMA-targeting bispecific for relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma, saw more than 500 institutions enroll in its risk-management program.
Regeneron also presented positive Lynozyfic data in light chain amyloidosis at this year’s ASCO meeting and plans to start additional Phase 3 studies in multiple myeloma and precursor conditions.
However, the company disclosed that its fianlimab-cemiplimab combination missed its primary endpoint in a Phase 3 trial for first-line metastatic melanoma against Keytruda, and that early Phase 2 data in first-line advanced non-small-cell lung cancer weren’t strong enough to justify moving to Phase 3. A separate Phase 3 readout for the same combination in adjuvant melanoma is still expected in the fourth quarter.
Longer term, Regeneron is positioning Lynozyfic as a bid to reshape multiple myeloma treatment altogether — pushing the drug into earlier treatment lines and even into precursor conditions, with the goal of intervening before the disease becomes malignant. The company also has several bispecific antibody programs in earlier stages for lymphoma and ovarian cancer.
5. Revolution Medicines (NASDAQ:RVMD)
Market cap: US$46.01 billion
Share price: US$214.66
Revolution Medicines is a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing targeted therapies for RAS-addicted cancers. Its pipeline includes RAS(ON) inhibitors that suppress different variants of RAS proteins, including the G12C, G12D and G12V mutations.
At the start of the year, Revolution’s G12D-selective inhibitor zoldonrasib became the first drug targeting the G12D mutation to receive the FDA’s breakthrough therapy designation, which the agency granted it for previously treated adult patients who have locally advanced or metastatic non-small cell lung cancer with the KRAS-G12D mutation.
In the second quarter, the FDA accepted the company’s new drug application for daraxonrasib, its oral RAS(ON) multi-selective inhibitor, for patients with metastatic pancreatic adenocarcinoma that was previously treated. The decision was made after results from Revolution’s Phase 3 RASolute 302 trial showed positive results for overall and progression-free survival.
As of May, Revolution is distributing the treatment to doctors on behalf of over 2,000 patients through an FDA approved expanded access program.
On August 10, Revolution and fellow oncology company BeOne Medicines announced a clinical collaboration that will see the companies test combinations of BeOne’s PRMT5 inhibitor and Revolution’s RAS(ON) inhibitors.
6. BeOne Medicines (NASDAQ:ONC)
Market cap: US$42 billion
Share price: US$376.86
BeOne Medicines, formerly BeiGene, is a global oncology company with operations on six continents. Its pipeline includes therapies for leukemia, breast cancer, pancreatic cancer and lymphoma.
The company’s commercialized products include Brukinsa (zanubrutinib), a BTK inhibitor that holds the top market share in the US, and brought in US$1.24 billion in global revenue in Q2 alone according to its quarterly results.
During the period, BeOne revealed its Mangrove Phase 3 trial testing a chemo-free regimen of Brukinsa with rituximab in mantle cell lymphoma (MCL) met its primary endpoint. The company expects to release four more Phase 3 readouts for the treatment over the next three years.
The company’s Beqalzi (sonrotoclax) was granted accelerated approval by the FDA for treating adults with MCL that is relapsed or refractory that have undergone treatment with a BTK inhibitor at at least one other therapy.
As mentioned above, BeOne recently announced a collaboration with Revolution Medicines that will test Revolution’s RAS(ON) inhibitors with BeOne’s BGB-58067 candidate, a PRMT5 inhibitor that recently received orphan drug designation from the FDA for pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma.
Market cap: US$25.14 billion
Share price: US$174.38
Moderna is a leader in applied mRNA science with a diverse clinical portfolio of vaccines and therapeutics. Its mRNA platform harnesses the body’s immune system to identify and kill cancer cells, including individualized mRNA-based personalized cancer vaccines.
In August 2026, Moderna and Merck announced that their combination personalized, mRNA-based cancer treatment succeeded in a late-stage trial for melanoma, a first for this kind of therapy.
The treatment, intismeran autogene, is custom-built for each patient, with doctors sequencing a sample of the patient’s tumor to identify specific mutations driving their cancer, and encoding that information into an mRNA shot designed to train the immune system to attack it.
In the trial, patients who’d had melanoma surgically removed received either the personalized treatment alongside Merck’s immunotherapy Keytruda or Keytruda alone. Those getting the combination were significantly less likely to have their cancer come back or spread, with no new safety concerns.
The companies plan to begin talking to regulators about approval.
Market cap: US$23.3 billion
Share price: US$113.12
Biopharma company BioNTech is advancing next-generation immuno-oncology treatments, targeted therapies and mRNA cancer vaccines. It is targeting various forms of cancer, including lung, breast and gastrointestinal cancers.
The company’s FixVac (Fixed Vaccine) platform includes non-personalized vaccine candidates designed to teach the immune system to target specific forms of cancer cells in solid tumors.
It is also developing individualized mRNA cancer vaccines through the iNeST platform that target a patient’s unique mutations. Its autogene cevumeran candidate, a collaboration with Roche subsidiary Genentech, is currently undergoing Phase 2 trials for adjuvant colorectal and pancreatic cancers.
BioNTech has a collaboration deal with China-based biotech company Duality Biologics to develop, manufacture and license multiple antibody-drug conjugate candidates.
The pair’s candidate trastuzumab pamirtecan is currently being advanced in multiple clinical trials, including two Phase 3 trials, one evaluating it compared to a chemotherapy chosen by the investigator in patients with recurrent endometrial cancer, and another focused on patients with metastatic breast cancer that is HR positive and low in HER2.
According to BioNTech’s Q2 results, the partners will decide on the optimal regulatory path taking into consideration the data for both endometrial and breast cancer. They plan to file a biologics license application this year.
This is an updated version of an article first published by the Investing News Network in 2018.
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Securities Disclosure: I, Melissa Pistilli, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.
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