There was a KRAS conference a couple of weeks ago, and as I understand it that's exactly what happened. It is such a game changer that they could not contain their excitement. For all the ridiculous talk of "they're being paid by 'Big Pharma' to prolong treatment to make them money", I assure you that oncologists DEEPLY want to become "obsolete". They want a cure. They want patients to live. Drugs like this and many others on the horizon are another step in that process.
As is often the case, the title is hyperbolic. The discovery applies to 20% of tumors, and "one of cancer's significant defenses" or "a key weakness of cancer" would be more accurate.
That said, I'll happily take "we discovered a key weakness in 20% of cancers," please and thank you.
Not hyperbolic, just incomplete ... this drug inhibits the KRAS mutation that is the "master switch" for 90% of pancreatic cancers and 50% of colon cancers. KRAS was considered "undruggable" so this is a huge breakthrough which is why oncologists gave a standing ovation for nearly a minute in the middle of a talk, with some of them in tears.
I’m surprised Michael Levin’s research hasn’t expanded much beyond a certain YouTube media bubble. They’re able to start and stop cancer growth with only voltage changes between cells, likewise they can also trigger regeneration or anatomical changes using voltage changes. His research seems to suggest a lot of important anatomical plans are stored in an electric field around the body, not in the DNA. This model’s explanation for cancer is that some cells become disconnected from this field and start growing independently of the overall body plan.
Please remember that science is under attack in the United States - new proposals would gut the nih even beyond the horror that is ongoing. As a scientist I am horrified and I truly hope that we don’t abandon the usas historically strong investment in the future.
The bigger deal about this is that KRAS was considered an "undruggable" target.
Recent advancements have allowed us to design biologics to do things we previously thought impossible, which broadens the horizons for other treatments in the future.
Another ongoing HN thread from yesterday around some exciting cancer treatment breakthroughs, this time with a CRISPR Cas12a2 mechanism: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48505231
This subthread there is a fascinating explainer about one user's journey into funding and incentivizing research into their own rare form of blood cancer, and how they are able to push forward the state of the art: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48506997 - something of a modern-day (and more accurate) Lorenzo's Oil!
It is more than plausible that spending money on AI is spending money on healthcare. I believe with little certainty that AI will help us find new ways to fight disease, improve our health and live longer lives.
Horrible disease. We just buried my wife’s father because of stage 4 pancreatic cancer. A month ago, he was still living his life as usual. Then he developed abdominal pain, was diagnosed, and died three weeks later.
I think we should also invest more in better diagnostics and early cancer detection. That could save many lives too.
> I think we should also invest more in better diagnostics and early cancer detection.
The issue with non-imaging early cancer detection seems to be false positives.
Afaik, medical regulatory agencies have been... resistant... to allowing marketing of tests.
The thinking seems to be "If people get a positive result, they may opt for interventions that are more harmful than their current disease state."
But, to me, that seems to leave unmentioned the fact that there's a finite "untreatable" cancer progression line, and while that's extending to later disease states, it's still a helluva lot easier to treat earlier.
i remember so much excitement around radioligand therapies like 177Lu-PSMA-617 being better than chemo and with way way less sides . And great improvements in pfs and os.
didnt seem to have lived up to the promise. seemed to have accelerated prostate cancer for my father who passed away in mere three months after first dose.
My mother's cousin just died from pancreatic cancer on Monday. She was in a trial for this drug and failed. Trying to figure out how I feel about this or how my family would.
Personally, I have epilepsy and am increasingly aware that while some paradigm-shifting treatments are on the horizon, they are a decade or so away and likely won't come to market in time to fully help me (particularly reverse small but accumulating damage caused by seizures). And that's a weird feeling.
I was fortunate to participate in the trial for this drug for over a year. It is nothing short of a miracle drug (although there is still more that can be done). I was forced to withdraw after the drug lost its effectiveness and my disease progressed. That said, though, for over a year all of my tumors either disappeared, shrank, or remained stable. For a disease that was largely considered a near-immediate death sentence, this drug is an absolute game change. I am eternally grateful for the scientists and researchers at RevMed.
This cancer is a pain. My father was extremely lucky, and was diagnosed early. Next up was months of chemo that left him to be a shell of himself. Then he could be operated. They removed parts of his stomach, his spleen and duodenum. And his whole pancreas.
Complications after his surgery meant he had two more. He is now, three weeks after the first operation learning to walk again. It will be an additional week or two untill he can eat. (Without the complication he would have been walking and eating two weeks after the first operation). Oh and he is a diabetic now, since they removed his pancreas.
Just crossing my fingers that he will get out of the hospital without any more complications, and adapt to the new life.
Do you think we don't have cure already for cancers???
Look for how much money the pharmaceutic cartels make annually, that is why these "drugs" aka cure will never ever be released because its side effects are still unknown.
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[ 3.0 ms ] story [ 943 ms ] thread"oncologists went wild over the results of a drug called daraxonrasib."
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daraxonrasib
That said, I'll happily take "we discovered a key weakness in 20% of cancers," please and thank you.
The bigger deal about this is that KRAS was considered an "undruggable" target.
Recent advancements have allowed us to design biologics to do things we previously thought impossible, which broadens the horizons for other treatments in the future.
Baby steps.
This subthread there is a fascinating explainer about one user's journey into funding and incentivizing research into their own rare form of blood cancer, and how they are able to push forward the state of the art: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48506997 - something of a modern-day (and more accurate) Lorenzo's Oil!
I think we should also invest more in better diagnostics and early cancer detection. That could save many lives too.
The issue with non-imaging early cancer detection seems to be false positives.
Afaik, medical regulatory agencies have been... resistant... to allowing marketing of tests.
The thinking seems to be "If people get a positive result, they may opt for interventions that are more harmful than their current disease state."
But, to me, that seems to leave unmentioned the fact that there's a finite "untreatable" cancer progression line, and while that's extending to later disease states, it's still a helluva lot easier to treat earlier.
didnt seem to have lived up to the promise. seemed to have accelerated prostate cancer for my father who passed away in mere three months after first dose.
Personally, I have epilepsy and am increasingly aware that while some paradigm-shifting treatments are on the horizon, they are a decade or so away and likely won't come to market in time to fully help me (particularly reverse small but accumulating damage caused by seizures). And that's a weird feeling.
Complications after his surgery meant he had two more. He is now, three weeks after the first operation learning to walk again. It will be an additional week or two untill he can eat. (Without the complication he would have been walking and eating two weeks after the first operation). Oh and he is a diabetic now, since they removed his pancreas.
Just crossing my fingers that he will get out of the hospital without any more complications, and adapt to the new life.
Look for how much money the pharmaceutic cartels make annually, that is why these "drugs" aka cure will never ever be released because its side effects are still unknown.