Cogent Biosciences
Rare disease drugmaker · based in Waltham, United States · founded 2014 · ticker COGT · cogentbio.com
Cogent Biosciences works on 5 rare diseases we track, including Cholangiocarcinoma, Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumor and 3 more. It has 4 active clinical trials, and 1 is looking for volunteers now.
The FDA is due to decide on Bezuclastinib + sunitinib for Gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST), after imatinib by November 30, 2026.
The FDA is due to decide on Bezuclastinib for Nonadvanced systemic mastocytosis by December 30, 2026.
The FDA is due to decide on Bezuclastinib for Advanced systemic mastocytosis by June 29, 2027.
Email me the day the FDA decidesAll upcoming rare disease FDA decisions
Cogent Biosciences is a Waltham, Massachusetts biotech, with a second research site in Boulder, Colorado, that is on the verge of its first approvals. The company began life in 2014 as Unum Therapeutics, a cell therapy company that went public in 2018 and struggled.
Cogent Biosciences pipeline
Each row lists the diseases Cogent Biosciences is studying at that stage, from the ones closest to approval down to the earliest work.
Bezuclastinib + sunitinib for Gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST), after imatinib, with a decision due by November 30, 2026.
Bezuclastinib for Nonadvanced systemic mastocytosis, with a decision due by December 30, 2026.
Bezuclastinib for Advanced systemic mastocytosis, with a decision due by June 29, 2027.
Cogent Biosciences clinical trials
These are Cogent Biosciences trials for the rare diseases we track, from ClinicalTrials.gov. Statuses there can lag behind company news, so confirm with the study team before you plan around one.
1 trial looking for volunteers now
(Apex) Bezuclastinib in Patients With Advanced Systemic Mastocytosis
Tests bezuclastinib
For Advanced Systemic Mastocytosis (AdvSM), SM With an Associated Hematologic Neoplasm (SM-AHN), Mast Cell Leukemia (MCL) and Aggressive Systemic Mastocytosis (ASM)
3 trials underway, not taking new volunteers
(Summit) A Study to Evaluate the Efficacy and Safety of CGT9486 Versus Placebo in Patients With Indolent or Smoldering Systemic Mastocytosis
Tests Bezuclastinib Tablets (Formulation A), Bezuclastinib Tablets (Formulation B), Placebo Tablets
For SSM, Mastocytosis, Indolent, Mastocytosis, Systemic, Mastocytosis and ISM
A Study of an FGFR2/3 Inhibitor (CGT4859) in Patients With Cholangiocarcinoma and Other Advanced Solid Tumors
Tests CGT4859
For Intrahepatic Cholangiocarcinoma (Icc), Cholangiocarcinoma, Other Solid Tumors, Adult, FGFR2 Gene Fusion/Rearrangement and FGFR2 Gene Amplification
SARC044: A Phase II Trial of Bezuclastinib in Combination With Sunitinib in Patients With GIST
Tests Bezuclastinib in combination with sunitinib
For Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumors and GIST
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More about Cogent Biosciences
In July 2020 it acquired Kiq, a private company holding the rights to a KIT inhibitor originally discovered at Plexxikon, renamed itself Cogent Biosciences that October under CEO Andrew Robbins, and wound down the cell therapy work. Everything since has been built around that one molecule, bezuclastinib, and Cogent trades on Nasdaq as COGT.
Bezuclastinib is a pill designed to block a specific mutant form of the KIT protein, KIT D816V, which drives roughly 90 to 95% of systemic mastocytosis, a rare disease in which abnormal mast cells accumulate in the bone marrow, skin, and organs.
What sets it apart from earlier KIT drugs is selectivity: it is built to hit the mutant protein while largely sparing related enzymes, and it was designed to stay out of the brain, which is meant to avoid the cognitive side effects seen with avapritinib (Ayvakit), the only approved targeted therapy in this space.
In the placebo-controlled SUMMIT trial in non-advanced systemic mastocytosis, reported in July 2025, patients on bezuclastinib had a significantly larger drop in total symptom score at 24 weeks than patients on placebo, and 87% saw their serum tryptase fall by at least half, compared with none on placebo. The most common side effects were hair color change and altered taste, with liver enzyme elevations in about one in five patients.
Keep reading about Cogent Biosciences
The FDA accepted the application with a decision date of December 30, 2026. In the single-arm APEX trial in advanced systemic mastocytosis, a more aggressive form that often overlaps with blood cancers, 65% of evaluable patients responded, and Cogent submitted that application on June 30, 2026.
The third indication is gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST), another cancer driven by KIT mutations.
In the Phase 3 PEAK trial, reported in November 2025 and presented at ASCO in 2026, adding bezuclastinib to sunitinib in patients whose GIST had progressed on imatinib cut the risk of progression or death in half, extending median progression-free survival from 9.2 to 16.5 months, the first positive Phase 3 result in second-line GIST in more than two decades.
The FDA granted priority review with a decision date of November 30, 2026. Cogent has hired its full commercial field team, signed a long-term manufacturing agreement in September 2026, and offers expanded access programs in both systemic mastocytosis and GIST for patients who cannot join a trial.
Behind bezuclastinib, the company has three early-stage precision cancer drugs in Phase 1: CGT4859 for FGFR2 and FGFR3-driven tumors including bile duct cancer, CGT4255 for HER2-mutant cancers, and CGT6297 for PIK3CA-mutant breast and endometrial cancers, plus preclinical programs against pan-KRAS and the JAK2 V617F mutation behind polycythemia vera and other myeloproliferative neoplasms.
With $866 million in cash on a pro forma basis at mid-2026, Cogent says it is funded into late 2028.
Where Cogent Biosciences trials take place
The trials above run at 116 study sites in 16 countries. Tap a country to see its states, cities and hospitals.
Rare diseases Cogent Biosciences works on
Each disease page lists every open trial, not only Cogent Biosciences's, plus approved treatments.
Cholangiocarcinoma is a rare and aggressive cancer that forms in the bile ducts, the thin tubes that carry digestive fluid (bile) from the liver to the small intestine.
How common: About 8,000 new cases per year in the U.S.; rising incidence worldwide
Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumor
Gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GISTs) are the most common mesenchymal tumors of the gastrointestinal tract, arising from the interstitial cells of Cajal or their precursors.
How common: About 6,000 new cases per year in the U.S. (American Cancer Society); true incidence may be higher as small GISTs are often incidentally discovered
Mastocytosis is a rare hematological disorder characterized by clonal expansion of mast cells in bone marrow, organs, and tissues.
How common: 1 in 10,000 to 1 in 300,000 (estimates vary widely)
Multiple myeloma is a cancer of plasma cells, the white blood cells that make antibodies.
How common: About 36,000 new US diagnoses expected in 2026 and roughly 203,000 people living with it, which puts myeloma right at the edge of the US rare disease threshold; it is 1.7% of all new cancers (NCI SEER)
Systemic Mastocytosis is a rare hematologic disorder characterized by accumulation and proliferation of abnormal mast cells in bone marrow, lymphoid tissues, and other organs.
How common: Approximately 1 case per 10,000 to 20,000 people; can occur at any age but more common in adults
Where to get support
Patient groups can explain a diagnosis, point you to specialists and tell you about trials before they open. Cogent Biosciences's own site is cogentbio.com, and our help paying for treatment page lists drugmaker programs and charity funds.
- National Cancer Institute - Bile Duct CancerCholangiocarcinoma and Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumor
- Cholangiocarcinoma FoundationCholangiocarcinoma
- The Life Raft Group (GIST Support)Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumor
- The Mastocytosis SocietyMastocytosis
- NIH GARD - MastocytosisMastocytosis
- NCI SEER - Cancer Stat Facts: MyelomaMultiple Myeloma
- NCI PDQ - Plasma Cell Neoplasms (Including Multiple Myeloma) Treatment, Patient VersionMultiple Myeloma
- National Organization for Rare Disorders (NORD)Systemic Mastocytosis