A new drug for pancreatic cancer, daraxonrasib, has shown promise in prolonging patient survival in recent clinical trials conducted by Revolution Medicines. The trials indicated that patients receiving daraxonrasib lived an average of 13.2 months, compared to 6.7 months for those treated with standard chemotherapy.
Pancreatic cancer typically has a low five-year survival rate of about 3% once it metastasizes. The drug targets the KRAS gene, which was previously considered “undruggable.” University research has been crucial in the development of this treatment, facilitating collaboration between academic institutions and biotech companies.
James Frederich, a chemist at Florida State University and head of The Frederich Laboratory, commented on the significance of this advancement. He specializes in chemical biology, synthesis, and catalysis, focusing on complex natural products with biological activity. Frederich emphasized the role of universities in fostering high-risk scientific research.
“This is a wonderful example of the impact of translational academic research,” Frederich stated. He noted that Revolution Medicines began as an academic startup exploring novel cancer therapy mechanisms, highlighting that academic venues often allow for the pursuit of high-risk projects that can lead to groundbreaking discoveries.
Frederich also expressed concern that the contributions of academic research can be overlooked when treatments become available to patients. He believes daraxonrasib exemplifies the long-term benefits of investing in academic science.
For media inquiries, James Frederich can be contacted via email at jfrederich@fsu.edu.
Source: news.fsu.edu via Google News.
