New drug shows promise for late-stage pancreatic cancer

CANCER DIGEST – May 2, 2026 – Results of an early stage clinical trial testing a new treatment for pancreatic cancer has shown surprisingly high response rates with few side effects among the first 40 patients treated for at least 18 months. The early results were presented at the American Association for Cancer Research (AARC) annual meeting that took place in San Diego, April 17-22, 2026. 

Such early stage trials with a new drug are designed to ensure safety and assess the response rate, meaning measuring how the new drug affects the tumor in patients. The results presented by Dr. Brian Wolpin, at Dana Farber Cancer Research Institute, which is leading the trial.

The trial is testing a drub called daraxonrasib, which is designed to bind to tumor cells with a specific genetic mutation, called RAS. Cancers that are driven by such RAS mutations are particularly  hard to treat due to a lack of surface proteins that can be used as targets by the immune system. This trial involved patients with advanced metastatic pancreatic cancer that has spread to other tissues who have not been previously treated with a drug targeting RAS.

Among the first 40 patients who had undergone treatment for at least 18 months, 47 percent of those treated with the drug alone responded to the treatment, with one patient who had a complete response. In other words the drug shrank tumors in nearly half the patients with one patient having a complete response, meaning the cancer became undetectable. 

In patients treated with daraxonrasib plus chemotherapy, 58 percent of patients responded, or had their tumors shrink. Of those, 84 percent had no disease progression at six months and 90 percent survived. Side effects included rash, diarrhea, and stomatitis, or inflammation of the membranes of the mouth. The most common side effect was anemia affecting 33 percent of the patients and diminished immune cells, called neutrophils affecting 20 percent of the patients.

The results cleared the way for larger comparison trials that could lead to FDA approval. A Phase 3 trial is being designed to test the combination therapy with daraxonrasib and chemotherapy compared to daraxonrasib alone and chemotherapy alone.

“The activity observed with daraxonrasib in the first line setting, as both single-agent and combination therapy, represents a promising signal in this difficult-to-treat population,” said Alan Sandler, M.D., chief development officer of Revolution Medicines the maker of daraxonrasib. “We believe these findings support continued evaluation of daraxonrasib in the ongoing Phase 3 RASolute 303 trial in patients with previously untreated metastatic PDAC.”

Sources: Globe Newswire press release and Dana Farber Cancer Institute press release and AACR annual meeting abstract LB407/7