# Cetuximab sarotalocan

Source: https://onco.cc/drugs/cetuximab-sarotalocan/  
OnCo record `cetuximab-sarotalocan` (Treatment). Data CC BY-NC 4.0, attribute "Data from OnCo (onco.cc)"; commercial use needs a licence.

## TL;DR

Cetuximab sarotalocan is an EGFR antibody carrying a light-activated dye: after infusion, a red laser is shone on the tumour and the cells burst. It has been approved in Japan since 2020.

## Summary

Cetuximab sarotalocan is Rakuten Medical's photoimmunotherapy. It was approved in Japan (September 2020) for unresectable locally advanced or recurrent head and neck cancer with conditional approval; two global phase 3 trials in locally recurrent HNSCC continue without US approval to date. Also being studied in cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma.

## Fields

- Kind: Treatment
- Status: approved
- Last checked: 2026-09-07
- Brand: Akalux
- Code: ASP-1929, RM-1929
- Modality: Photoimmunotherapy conjugate (anti-EGFR antibody-IR700 dye)
- Mechanism: Cetuximab conjugated to IRDye700DX; 690 nm light triggers photochemical membrane damage in EGFR-bound cells and immunogenic cell death.
- Approvals: Japan 2020: Unresectable locally advanced or recurrent head and neck cancer (conditional)
- Dosing: Intravenous infusion, then light at 24 hours; 640 mg/m² followed by 50 J/cm² (surface) or 100 J/cm (interstitial) illumination; repeatable

## Sources

- Development status: https://www.pharmaceutical-technology.com/data-insights/cetuximab-sarotalocan-rakuten-medical-recurrent-head-and-neck-squamous-cell-carcinoma-likelihood-of-approval/

## Connected records

- cancers: [Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma](https://onco.cc/cancers/head-and-neck/), [HPV-negative head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (including HPV-negative oropharyngeal cancer)](https://onco.cc/cancers/hpv-negative-head-and-neck-cancer/), [Recurrent or metastatic head and neck squamous cell carcinoma](https://onco.cc/cancers/recurrent-metastatic-hnscc/)
- technologies: [Photodynamic therapy lasers and light sources](https://onco.cc/technologies/photodynamic-therapy-lasers/), [Photoimmunotherapy & photodynamic therapy](https://onco.cc/technologies/photoimmunotherapy/)
- targets: [EGFR](https://onco.cc/targets/egfr/)
- companies: [Rakuten Medical](https://onco.cc/companies/rakuten-medical/)
- trials: [A Study of ASP-1929 Photoimmunotherapy in Combination With Pembrolizumab in First-line Treatment of Locoregional Recurrent Squamous Cell Carcinoma of ](https://onco.cc/trials/nct06699212/)
- ideas: [Photoimmunotherapy as an in situ vaccine with PD-1 blockade](https://onco.cc/ideas/idea-photoimmunotherapy-plus-pd1/)
- roadmaps: [Devices and physical therapies roadmap: heat and light → electric fields and focused sound → drug-releasing implants](https://onco.cc/roadmaps/devices-roadmap/)

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