A daily pill has been shown to double survival time for patients with advanced pancreatic cancer, according to a clinical trial described as a 'gamechanger' by experts. The drug, daraxonrasib, targets the Kras protein that fuels nearly all pancreatic cancers.
In a trial of 500 patients with metastatic pancreatic cancer, those taking the pill lived an average of 13.2 months, compared with 6.6 to 6.7 months for those on chemotherapy. Side-effects were also fewer. The findings were presented at the American Society of Clinical Oncology (Asco) annual meeting in Chicago.
Dr Rachna Shroff, a gastrointestinal cancer expert at the University of Arizona Cancer Center, who was not involved in the study, said: 'These results are landscape-changing. We are seeing unprecedented survival.' Dr Julie Gralow, Asco’s chief medical officer, called the drug a 'gamechanger' and a 'grand slam'.
The drug works by gluing molecules together to shut down the overactive Kras protein, which is present in more than 90% of patients with the most common form of pancreatic cancer. Paula Hanford, chief executive of Pancreatic Cancer Action, said the discovery was one of the most significant treatment developments she had ever seen.
Anna Jewell of Pancreatic Cancer UK highlighted the need to ensure such drugs become available to patients, noting that half of people with pancreatic cancer die within three months of diagnosis. The trial was led by researchers at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston.
