Scientists finally crack an “undruggable” pancreatic cancer target and nearly double survival
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- Daraxonrasib cut the risk of death by 60% and nearly doubled overall survival in a landmark trial for advanced pancreatic cancer.
- KRAS mutation drives more than 90% of pancreatic tumors, acting as a permanent “on” switch for cell growth.
- Chemotherapy has been the standard treatment for advanced pancreatic cancer, but its effectiveness is limited by rapid resistance development.
- Pancreatic cancer has a five‑year mortality rate of about 97% for metastatic cases diagnosed between 2015 and 2021.
- Scientists previously deemed KRAS “undruggable” because its protein surface lacks pockets for drug binding.
Why it matters: Advanced pancreatic cancer patients gain longer survival, while the role of chemotherapy as the main treatment is reduced as daraxonrasib shows a 60% death‑risk cut and nearly doubles overall survival.
