46 days instead of 11: the UK has licensed a treatment for fluid build-up in cancer
What happened
On Wednesday 7 October 2026, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) announced that it has licensed a medicine called catumaxomab, brand name Korjuny. The licence itself was granted on 2 October 2026, to a company called Atnahs Pharma UK Limited. The medicine treats something called malignant ascites. That is when fluid builds up inside the tummy because of cancer, and the fluid contains cancer cells. The licence is narrow. It covers adults whose cancer is "EpCAM-positive", and only when further cancer treatment that works through the whole body is no longer suitable for them. EpCAM is a protein found on the surface of some cancer cells. Catumaxomab is a monoclonal antibody: a lab-made protein designed to stick to a particular target. This one sticks to two things at once. One end grabs EpCAM on the cancer cell, the other grabs an immune cell, pulling the two together so the immune system attacks the cancer. It is not a tablet, and not an ordinary drip into the arm. A cancer doctor puts it straight into the space inside the abdomen, through a thin tube called a catheter, as four infusions with the dose rising each time. Julian Beach, the MHRA's Interim Executive Director of Healthcare Quality and Access, said: "This approval provides an additional treatment option that can help extend the time patients live without needing another procedure to drain fluid." The MHRA added that, as with all licensed medicines, it will keep the safety and effectiveness of catumaxomab under close review.
Why this matters
Ascites is common in advanced cancer, and it is grim to live with. The fluid builds up until the tummy is swollen and tight. People feel breathless, because the fluid presses up against the lungs. They feel full after a few mouthfuls. Clothes stop fitting. Sitting comfortably and sleeping both get harder. Cancer Research UK lists the cancers that can cause ascites. They include ovarian, womb, bowel, stomach, pancreatic, liver, lung and breast cancer, as well as mesothelioma in the lining of the abdomen. The usual treatment is to drain the fluid off, in a procedure called paracentesis. A doctor numbs the skin, then puts a thin tube through the wall of the abdomen and lets the fluid out. Draining works well. Cancer Research UK says it relieves symptoms in about 90 out of every 100 people who have it. The problem is what happens next. The fluid often comes back, so the person comes back too, for another drain, and then another. Each one is a hospital trip, a tube, and hours or sometimes days of waiting. That is the gap this medicine aims at. It is not trying to cure anything. It is trying to buy time between drains. For someone already seriously unwell, that is not a small thing. Fewer hospital trips means more days at home.
What the evidence actually says
It is easy to read more into a result like this than is really there, so it is worth going slowly. The main study included 258 adults. All of them had malignant ascites, and all of them had EpCAM-positive cancer. They had either run out of chemotherapy options, or chemotherapy was not suitable for them. Everyone in the study had their fluid drained. Some were then given catumaxomab. Those who had catumaxomab after the drain went about 46 days before needing another one. Those who had the drain alone went about 11 days. Now the important part. That number measures one specific thing: how long until the next drainage procedure. It is not a measure of living longer. The MHRA's own wording is careful about this, and talks about time without needing another procedure. Anyone telling you this medicine extends life is going beyond what the study showed. The side effects are real and common. The MHRA lists feeling sick, being sick, diarrhoea, tummy pain, fever, chills and tiredness. It also lists cytokine release syndrome. That is when the immune system reacts strongly and causes inflammation around the body, which can make someone feel very unwell. In a sense it is the flip side of how the medicine works, because it deliberately stirs the immune system up. That is one reason a hospital team gives it and watches the person closely afterwards. One more thing, and it matters. A licence is not the same as the NHS paying for something. The MHRA decides whether a medicine is safe enough and works well enough to be sold here. A separate body, NICE, looks at whether the NHS in England should fund it, and it has an evaluation of catumaxomab under way. Until that finishes, who can get this on the NHS is not settled. For context, the medicine has been authorised across the European Union since 10 February 2025, so UK regulators were not the first to look at it.
Qurexa perspective
We should be straight about our part in this, which is a small one. Qurexa is a healthcare logistics and pharmacy delivery company in Lincolnshire. This is a hospital treatment, given by a cancer specialist into the abdomen. It is not something we could ever deliver to a door. What we do see is the other side of a week like this. People living with advanced cancer are often making a lot of journeys: a drain one week, a scan the next, blood tests in between. At the same time there is a long list of medicines to keep on top of at home, and the shopping still needs doing. That part we can help with. Prescriptions to the door instead of another trip out. Keeping an eye on when things run out, so nobody finds an empty box on a Sunday. Groceries in a week when there is no energy left for a supermarket. None of that changes anyone's treatment, and we would not pretend otherwise. It just takes a few errands out of a week that is already full.
Practical advice
If you or someone close to you is living with ascites, these are the things worth doing. Speak up early. You do not have to wait until it is unbearable. Tell your team if your tummy is swelling, your clothes feel tighter, you are getting breathless, or you feel full after a few mouthfuls. Find out who to ring. Ask whose job it is to arrange a drain, and the fastest way to reach them. In many areas that is a cancer nurse specialist or a palliative care team with a direct number. Knowing it before you need it saves a bad day later. Ask about a long-term drain. For some people, a tube that stays in place means fluid can be let out at home rather than in hospital. It is not right for everyone, but it is worth asking. Ask the right question about this medicine. If it sounds relevant, the useful question for your oncology team is: "Is my cancer EpCAM-positive, and would this be an option for me?" They will know whether it fits. Remember it is only licensed for people who cannot have further whole-body cancer treatment. Write your questions down, and keep an up-to-date list of your medicines to take with you. Appointments go quickly, and your pharmacist can help you make sense of any changes. Do not change anything on your own. Water tablets, known as diuretics, help some people with ascites, and Cancer Research UK notes research suggests they might stop fluid building up in some cases. They are not right for everyone. Never start or stop a medicine because of something you read, including this. And please do not try to buy this privately off the back of a news story. Talk to your oncology team first. They know your cancer, and whether this is even the right conversation to be having.
What to know
The short version. The MHRA announced on 7 October 2026 that catumaxomab, brand name Korjuny, has been licensed in the UK, with the licence granted on 2 October 2026. It treats malignant ascites: fluid containing cancer cells building up in the abdomen. It is only for adults with EpCAM-positive cancer, and only when further whole-body cancer treatment is no longer suitable. A cancer doctor gives it as four infusions straight into the abdomen. In the main study of 258 people, those given it after a drain went about 46 days before needing another drain, against about 11 days for a drain alone. That result is about time between drainage procedures. It is not evidence of living longer. Side effects are common, and include sickness, diarrhoea, tummy pain, fever, chills, tiredness and cytokine release syndrome. A licence is not NHS funding. NICE is separately assessing whether the NHS in England should pay for it. If this is relevant to you, the next step is a conversation with your oncology team, not a decision made at home. Sources: MHRA / GOV.UK, "MHRA approves catumaxomab to treat cancer-related fluid build-up in the abdomen", 7 October 2026, https://www.gov.uk/government/news/mhra-approves-catumaxomab-to-treat-cancer-related-fluid-build-up-in-the-abdomen. Cancer Research UK, "Treating fluid in the abdomen (ascites)", last reviewed 3 May 2024, https://www.cancerresearchuk.org/about-cancer/coping/physically/fluid-abdomen-ascites/treating. European Medicines Agency, "Korjuny (catumaxomab)", EU marketing authorisation granted 10 February 2025, https://www.ema.europa.eu/en/medicines/human/EPAR/korjuny. National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, "Catumaxomab for treating malignant ascites in EpCAM-positive carcinoma" (in development, GID-TA11774), https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/indevelopment/gid-ta11774. This article is for general information and does not replace advice from a doctor, pharmacist, cancer nurse specialist or other qualified healthcare professional. If you are living with cancer and have symptoms of fluid build-up, please contact your own care team.
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