New Pancreatic Cancer Drug Daraxonrasib Shows Promising Trial Results

Daraxonrasib, a daily pill targeting the KRAS gene behind pancreatic cancer, has nearly doubled overall survival times in advanced patients compared to standard chemotherapy, according to trial results released by Revolution Medicines.

Pharmaceutical company Revolution Medicines released the full Phase 3 trial results on June 1, 2026, at the American Society for Clinical Oncology meeting in Chicago, as reported by PBS News. The drug belongs to a class known as RAS inhibitors, which home in on mutations of the KRAS gene. PBS News notes that these mutations appear in more than 90 percent of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) cases, 40 to 45 percent of colorectal cancer patients, and up to 30 percent of non-small cell lung cancer patients.

Phase 3 Trial Findings and Survival Metrics

Between October 2024 and November 2025, researchers randomly selected roughly half of 500 metastatic PDAC patients to receive daraxonrasib, with the remainder receiving standard chemotherapy, according to PBS News. The trial evaluated patients who had previously received treatment for metastatic pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma that had spread to other parts of the body.

Earlier Phase 1 and 2 trial results released in April 2026 showed an overall survival rate of 13.2 months for patients receiving daraxonrasib, compared to 6.7 months for standard chemotherapy, as detailed by PBS News. Dr. Emil Lou, a professor of medicine at the University of Minnesota Medical School and medical oncologist, told PBS News that an overall survival rate exceeding one year for this patient population is extraordinary.

In addition to overall survival improvements, patients taking the daily pill experienced a median progression-free survival of 7.2 months, compared to 3.6 months for those on chemotherapy, according to PBS News data. Furthermore, approximately one-third of patients treated with daraxonrasib showed an objective response, meaning CT scans revealed tumor shrinkage of 30 percent or more, as stated by Dr. Elizabeth Jaffee, oncology professor and deputy director of the Johns Hopkins Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center, in reporting by PBS News.

Side Effects and Safety Profile

While Phase 1 and 2 trials recorded severe side effects in roughly a third of participants, Phase 3 data showed that 62 percent of patients on daraxonrasib reported severe adverse events, according to PBS News. That figure compares to about 70 percent of patients experiencing severe side effects while undergoing standard chemotherapy.

Reported side effects include rash, diarrhea, inflammation of the mouth or gastrointestinal tract, nausea, and fatigue, as outlined by PBS News. Experts emphasize that while the preliminary data raise hopes for prolonging patient lives, pancreatic cancer remains notoriously difficult to detect early and carries a five-year survival rate of just 3 percent once it spreads to other parts of the body.