Why invest in oncology

Within healthcare, oncology remains one of the biggest and most active therapeutic segments.

Cancer is one of the defining medical challenges of our time. In the US, around 38% of people are expected to receive a cancer diagnosis during their lifetime[2], and cancer remains among the leading causes of death globally. At the same time, oncology attracts a disproportionate share of scientific talent, clinical research and industry investment.

Progress is visible. Five-year cancer survival rates have improved significantly since the 1970s, helped by earlier detection, better screening and more targeted treatments. In 2025 alone, the US Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) approved 19 new cancer drugs, 16 new diagnostic tests and expanded uses for existing cancer therapies[3]. Each approval can expand the treatment landscape. For investors, regulatory progress can also help identify companies with differentiated science, stronger pipelines and clearer long-term growth potential. Every year from the strategy’s inception in 2019 through to the end of 2025, our oncology strategy has held exposure to companies behind approximately six out of ten newly approved cancer drugs globally,[4] illustrating both the breadth of today's innovation cycle and Candriam's long-standing focus on clinically differentiated companies.

In addition, healthcare has also recently traded at a sizeable discount to the broader US equity market, a level seen only a few times over the past three decades. Historically, similar periods of discount have preceded stronger relative returns:

We believe that investing successfully in healthcare requires unique, combined expertise. That is why we bring together healthcare investors and scientific specialists, including professionals with PHDs in biology, biotechnology and oncology.  This combined knowledge helps us assess both the financial profile of companies and the clinical relevance of their innovations.

Precision oncology is driving a paradigm shift in cancer care

The most important shift in oncology is the move from broad treatment to precision intervention. Instead of treating cancer only by location - lung, breast, colon – oncological innovation is increasingly targeting the pathological drivers of disease. Several novel trends are reshaping the field:

• Selective molecular diagnostics: liquid biopsies to measure circulating tumour DNA can help detect microscopic cancer outgrowth earlier than conventional imaging in some settings.
• Targeted therapies: treatments are increasingly designed around specific molecular traits present in cancer tissues and highly captured with sophisticated biomarker strategies.
• Immunotherapy and cell therapy: the re-wiring the patient immune system is becoming a central tool in fighting cancer.
• Radiopharmaceuticals: targeted radiotherapeutics may open new treatment pathways for selected cancers.
• AI-enabled discovery and trial design: data can help identify patient groups, accelerate pharmacological and clinical research and improve the probability of clinical success.[5]

These advances are also changing the economics of oncology. The US precision oncology market was estimated at around USD 40 billion in 2025[6] and is projected to grow strongly over the next decade. Growth will not be linear. Clinical trial failures, pricing pressure, reimbursement decisions and regulatory outcomes can create sharp dispersion between winners and losers. That is why selectivity matters.