Insights on CAR-NK Therapy and Hodgkin Lymphoma Updates at ASH 2025

Sam Yamshon, MD NYU Langone Health | Andrew Evens, DO, MBA, MSc Rutgers Cancer Institute

January 15, 2026

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Key Points

  • Chimeric antigen receptor natural killer (CAR-NK) cell therapy represents a promising novel cellular therapy across diseases.

  • A data update from the S1826 trial confirmed nivolumab plus chemotherapy improved outcomes versus brentuximab vedotin plus chemotherapy in advanced-stage Hodgkin lymphoma.

  • The HD21 trial’s final analysis verified PET-guided BrECADD [brentuximab vedotin, etoposide, cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, dacarbazine, dexamethasone] was better tolerated and more effective than eBEACOPP [escalated bleomycin, etoposide, doxorubicin, cyclophosphamide, vincristine, procarbazine, and prednisone].

CAR-NK Cells and Key Lymphoma Trials at ASH 2025

Sam Yamshon, MD, of NYU Langone Health, met with Andrew Evens, DO, MBA, MSc, of Rutgers Cancer Institute, at the 2025 ASHAnnual Meeting(ASH 2025) to discuss novel therapy development and notable presentations from the conference.

Dr. Yamshon asked Dr. Evens for his perspective on the emerging field of CAR-NK therapies, which have shown early but excitingpreclinical and early clinical data. If CAR-NK therapies are shown to be safe and effective, they could find a place in sequence or combination with contemporary CAR T-cell therapies, Dr. Evens said. “It’s exciting to have a novel cellular therapy… I’m very, very hopeful, but we have a lot more work to do.”

The doctors also discussed the data updates from two key Hodgkin lymphoma trials at ASH 2025. The 3-year update for the S1826 trial confirmed that nivolumab with doxorubicin, vinblastine, and dacarbazine (AVD) had a sustained benefit versus brentuximab vedotin with AVD in advanced Hodgkin lymphoma. The HD21 study showed that a PET-guided BrECADD regimen improved survival and tolerability versus conventional eBEACOPP. The final 5-year analysis was presented at the meeting.

While novel Hodgkin lymphoma treatments have achieved durable responses in over 90% of patients, future research needs to determine how these treatments can be adjusted and what long-term effects they may have, Dr. Evens said.