U.S. approves breakthrough pancreatic cancer drug, heralding a new era for an intractable disease

image via New Scientist

August 26, 2026, 4:00 PM

• •The FDA approved daraxonrasib, a Revolution Medicines drug to be sold as Rasonque, for metastatic pancreatic cancer after prior chemotherapy.
• •The article says daraxonrasib is a targeted KRAS-directed treatment rather than chemotherapy.
• •In a phase 3 trial of 500 previously treated patients with metastatic pancreatic cancer, median overall survival was 13.2 months with daraxonrasib versus 6.6 to 6.7 months with chemotherapy.
• •Kyaw Lwin Aung said the drug targets activated KRAS protein in pancreatic cancer cells and could point toward reduced reliance on chemotherapy.
• •The article notes that KRAS-related mutations also appear in other cancers, potentially expanding use of similar targeted therapies.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved daraxonrasib for people with metastatic pancreatic cancer who have already undergone chemotherapy. Scientific American reports that in a phase 3 trial of 500 previously treated patients, the drug produced median overall survival of 13.2 months compared with roughly 6.6 to 6.7 months for chemotherapy. Oncologist Kyaw Lwin Aung said the medicine works by targeting activated KRAS protein in pancreatic cancer cells rather than using conventional chemotherapy. The article says the approval could mark a broader turning point for KRAS-targeted treatments in pancreatic cancer and potentially other cancers as well.

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