Doctors Celebrate Breakthrough Cancer Treatment with Standing Ovation

Hotair ^ | 06/01/2026 | John Sexton

[SeekAndFind]

We live in an age of wonders made possible by a combination of free markets and scientific advancement. This weekend a large group of oncologists, doctors who specialize in the treatment of cancer, met to show off their latest breakthroughs at a conference called ASCO26. The news from this conference is so good that it brought standing ovations from the assembled doctors.

The big breakthrough that everyone is excited about involves pancreatic cancer which has long been a death sentence for many people. For instance, cartoonist Scott Adams died from metastatic prostrate cancer earlier this year. But a new drug called daraxonrasib seems to dramatically extend the life of those treated with it. The NY Times wrote about it last month.

A drug nearing regulatory approval, daraxonrasib, is the first to substantially extend the lives of patients with pancreatic cancer. It works by targeting a cellular protein that fuels not just nearly all pancreatic tumors, but also many lung and colon cancers. Those three are the leading causes of cancer deaths.

Now, some scientists predict that the approach could wind up being the most significant advance in cancer treatment in 15 years, since the arrival of immunotherapy...

The drug that opened the floodgates, daraxonrasib, has been fast-tracked for review by the Food and Drug Administration and could win approval later this year. Until then, the agency has signed off on a plan by Revolution Medicines, the small Silicon Valley company developing the drug, to offer early access to some patients.

The pills, three taken daily, are not a cure — eventually, daraxonrasib stops working. Many patients do not respond. And it has side effects that can be harsh, including rash, diarrhea, fatigue, nausea and raw, split fingertips.

Until now, however, patients with pancreatic cancer have typically been offered grueling chemotherapy that does little to extend their lives.

A writer for STAT, a news site that covers biotech, posted the graph of survival rates that was presented this weekend.

People who don't follow cancer research often ask me why we haven't cured cancer. That perception masks a wonderful reality: We make amazing, stepwise progress every year, and the result is that many people live much longer today than they would have previously.

Right now we're in the thick of the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology, the biggest research meeting on new cancer medicines, and this morning a bunch of really important studies dropped. I'm going to review them here.

This first image is the result for daraxonrasib, a treatment for pancreatic cancer that is generating consdirable excitement. The green line is the probability of living for patients who got the new drug; the gray one is the chemo control group.

If you follow cancer drugs, a chart like this will make your breath hitch a little. I'm going to review these and some other data here.

pic.twitter.com/COdYnVRmLq— Matthew Herper (@matthewherper) May 31, 2026

When they put that chart up on the screen in front of other oncologists it got a standing ovation. 

This is not simply a new pancreatic cancer drug.

It is a reminder that even “undruggable” biology can become treatable with persistence.

Daraxonrasib doubled median OS vs chemotherapy in RAS G12 metastatic pancreatic cancer: 13.2 vs 6.6 months.
A remarkable ASCO moment.#ASCO26… pic.twitter.com/2IFbuwIALJ— Yüksel Ürün (@DrYukselUrun) May 31, 2026

Again, it's not a cure, but a cancer that was considered unbeatable has been shown to have a weakness. The drug works by turning off the gene that causes the disease to run rampant.

The KRAS gene helps cells regulate growth. It directs cells to make proteins that share its name — KRAS proteins — that are switched on when a cell needs to replicate.

Most of the time the protein is in the “off” position. The cancer-causing gene mutations, however, leave KRAS proteins stuck in the “on” state...

Revolution’s chemists took a bold approach to designing a compound, surprising company leaders. Their drug hit KRAS proteins when they were in the “on” state both in healthy and cancerous cells, switching the “on” state to “off.”

That may be the biggest news out of this conference but it's far from the only development. There is also some progress with lung cancer treatment.

The result, oncologists say, exceeded their expectations, and it appears it could generate optimism for the drug, which is being developed outside China by Summit Therapeutics. But the data also are likely to fuel debate on issues like the role of China in drug development and…— Matthew Herper (@matthewherper) May 31, 2026

And a new treatment for prostate cancer.

But wait! There's more!

Researchers also tested a new $JNJ drug in prostate cancer. It prevented cancer from recurring after surgery compared to another drug regimen. Here is that slide.

pic.twitter.com/KLOL9jlHvd— Matthew Herper (@matthewherper) May 31, 2026

And more:

And an Eli Lilly drug, Retevmo, delivered this stunning result in a genetically distinct form of non-small cell lung cancer.

$LLY pic.twitter.com/KzhSzHlSTe— Matthew Herper (@matthewherper) May 31, 2026

All of these developments are good news for future patients diagnosed with these cancers and could lead to additional breakthroughs as other companies race to find similar drugs they can bring to market. None of this happens overnight of course but with advances in AI we can expect it to happen much more frequently in the coming years. In ten years time, the cumulative change in treatments and survival rates could be pretty dramatic compared to where we are now.

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TOPICS: Health/Medicine; Science; Society
KEYWORDS: cancer; daraxonrasib; pancreas

[SeekAndFind]

The result, oncologists say, exceeded their expectations, and it appears it could generate optimism for the drug, which is being developed outside China by Summit Therapeutics. But the data also are likely to fuel debate on issues like the role of China in drug development and the future of cancer treatments.

A lot of researchers still want to see more data here, and those studies are forthcoming. One of the bigest questions is whether this study, conducted entirely in China, will translate to the rest of the world. That's a big question for $SMMT , who I spoke to for my story. You can find that here:

Researchers also tested a new $JNJ drug in prostate cancer. It prevented cancer from recurring after surgery compared to another drug regimen. Here is that slide.

There's even more: Researchers repurposed the breast cancer drug Verzenio in liposarcoma. Look at these results:

[FrankRizzo890]

I’ve not heard of that cancer that forces you to be “stretched out with face on the ground in adoration or submission”. But evidently Scott Adams had it.

[thinden]

Bttt. Thx for posting

[alexander_busek]

For instance, cartoonist Scott Adams died from metastatic prostrate prostate cancer earlier this year.

Was this article written by a high school drop-out!?

Regards,

[Bigg Red]

...Scott Adams died from metastatic prostrate cancer...

prostrate?

[Getready]

We are getting better success because we are targeting the cellular biochemical communication system. We know how the cellular division signalling works at the molecular level and we can inhibit those processes that have gone awry and hence stop uncontrolled cellular division, aka “cancer”.

A combination of concomitant therapies targeting different biochemical cellular division pathways, may even get to the place where we can suppress (for a long time) a tumor cell line in a patient. One key is to find the tumor line early

[griffin]

Hey, give him a break!

Did we give up when the Germans bombed Pearl Harbor?

He was on a roll and kept writing and ended up with this nice article.

;D

[bobbo666]

No, some half arsed AI.

Lazy folks use AI but then do not edit. It is no more reliable that a new intern. Good at collecting info and organizing the paper. But, it must be reviewed by a human.

Also, if the drug under discussion is for pancreatic why bother bringing up prostate? Uhh, they both start with letter “p”?

[antceecee]

Most likely received top honors in their class. This is the product of our current education standards.

[Bob Ireland]

Dare I mention Ivermectin ❓ . . . fenbendazole / Mebendazole 🤔

All breakthroughs in this deadly disease group - cancer - are welcome... but we need cures, if possible!

[Bob Ireland]

#10 - ?

[Bob Ireland]

*** ;D ***

If you are interested and you have Windows 10 or later, you have access to emojis by pressing on the keyboard the 'Windows' key and the 'period' key simultaneously. An emoji box will pop up with a few pages of various emojis.

I think some posters with earlier versions of Windows might have discovered an access to emojis... you could do a search.

[maddog55]

I believe there’s already a cure for cancers but big pharma/government won’t allow it... There’s much bigger money in extending cancer treatments vice curing them.

[sauropod]

Study

[sauropod]

Mention away. I take them.

Once again, I will point out that the new drug works for a time u til the cancer has built up a resistance to it.This is why it is held in reserve until the cancer starts growing again.

[SunkenCiv]

• New pancreatic cancer pill could reshape treatment as early trial results stun researchers [05/31/2026]
• AI finds signs of pancreatic cancer before tumors develop: An artificial intelligence model from the Mayo Clinic detected abnormalities on scans up to three years before patients were diagnosed. It's being evaluated in a clinical trial. [05/05/2026]
• AI Can Spot Pancreatic Cancer Years Before Diagnosis, Study Finds [05/02/2026]

[Bob Ireland]

***Mention away. I take them***

God bless you! If you have cancer, are they treating it with success?

[sauropod]

Yes, somewhat. My main tumor has been reduced in size >50%. My blood marker is down to low normal levels. My oncologist told me that I am having much better response than most, for which I give God the glory. Of course I am not telling the oncologist about my use of supplements or off-label meds.

I am continuing the protocol I am on (since Oct.). My oncologist was using words like “stable” and “quality of life”. I told him that whatever this is, I am gonna kill it. I mean it.

Be aware there is a concerted effort to redemonize IVM and this is also starting for FBZ.

Thank you for asking Bob. Means a lot.

‘Pod

[Bigg Red]

😁

[Bob Ireland]

***Of course I am not telling the oncologist about my use of supplements or off-label meds***

👌 😄 A shame, really. If you can claim complete remission, perhaps then you can enlighten him/her.

***Thank you for asking Bob. Means a lot***

My honor, as a Christian brother. I have been learning: His Grace is sufficient. Keep the eyes on the prize! 🙏 🛐