Iovance Biotherapeutics: The High‑Risk Cancer Stock I Think Could Change a Portfolio by 2036

Penny stocks sometimes offer significant upside potential. However, they also carry far more risk than more established corporations. Before investing in a penny stock, investors must do their due diligence (as usual) and ensure they are comfortable with the heightened risk and volatility.

Let's consider one penny stock that looks very risky but, given near-perfect execution, could see its shares skyrocket over the next decade: Iovance Biotherapeutics (NASDAQ: IOVA). Here is more on this cancer-fighting company.

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Iovance is finding some success

Iovance Biotherapeutics developed Amtagvi, a medicine manufactured from patients' own cancer-fighting cells. Amtagvi earned approval for melanoma in early 2024. Although the stock has not performed well since, Amtagvi has made decent commercial progress. In the fiscal year 2025, Iovance's revenue, most of which is generated through Amtagvi, totaled $263.5 million, up 60.6% year over year.

Iovance has plenty of momentum with its crown jewel. The company is working on earning approvals for Amtagvi in the European Union, the United Kingdom, and Australia. It also earned the green light in Canada last year. Beyond melanoma, Amtagvi is also investigating label expansions. It just reported encouraging results from a small, early stage clinical trial for the medicine in patients with some rare cancers.

Amtagvi has also earned the Fast Track Designation from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of non-small cell lung cancer. This designation helps expedite the development of promising medicines that could fill an unmet medical need in treating a serious disease. Amtagvi is undergoing studies across several other forms of cancer.

The best-case scenario for Iovance would be to launch Amtagvi for the treatment of melanoma in new markets, secure label expansions, and achieve consistent sales growth over the next 10 years. If Amtagvi can grab a decent share of a large market like NSCLC, Iovance's shares could soar on the back of strong financial results.

There are significant risks

Despite Amtagvi's momentum, Iovance Biotherapeutics faces important challenges. There are the usual potential clinical and regulatory roadblocks that biotech companies, especially smaller ones, have to try to navigate. Clinical setbacks could sink the stock price. However, Iovance Biotherapeutics faces other roadblocks.

Amtagvi has a complex manufacturing and administration process. Physicians have to collect patients' cells, prepare the medicine for each patient, and administer it via intravenous infusion after the patient has undergone chemotherapy. It takes about 34 days to manufacture Amtagvi, and it can only be administered at dedicated centers staffed by trained specialists.

This complex and expensive process significantly complicates matters for Iovance Biotherapeutics, which will struggle to turn a profit because of it. So, for all those reasons (and more), investing in biotech isn't for the faint of heart. But the stock could skyrocket over the next decade if it navigates the challenges successfully. Invest accordingly.

Prosper Junior Bakiny has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Iovance Biotherapeutics. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.