Key Considerations for Targeting in Pancreatic Cancer: Potential Impact on the Treatment Paradigm.
Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is among the most lethal solid malignancies, characterized by aggressive biology and a paucity of effective treatments.
APA
Eslinger C, Sonbol MB, et al. (2026). Key Considerations for Targeting in Pancreatic Cancer: Potential Impact on the Treatment Paradigm.. Drug design, development and therapy, 20, 559325. https://doi.org/10.2147/DDDT.S559325
MLA
Eslinger C, et al.. "Key Considerations for Targeting in Pancreatic Cancer: Potential Impact on the Treatment Paradigm.." Drug design, development and therapy, vol. 20, 2026, pp. 559325.
PMID
41924551
Abstract
Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is among the most lethal solid malignancies, characterized by aggressive biology and a paucity of effective treatments. Activating mutations in occur in more than 90% of cases and are fundamental to tumor initiation, progression, therapeutic resistance, and immune exclusion, establishing as the dominant oncogenic driver in PDAC. Long considered undruggable, has recently become a viable therapeutic target with the development of allele-specific inhibitors as well as pan-RAS(ON) agents capable of broadly suppressing mutant RAS signaling. Preclinical models and early-phase clinical trials demonstrate meaningful antitumor activity, with emerging evidence of tumor microenvironment remodeling and delayed resistance. Combination strategies integrating -directed therapies with chemotherapy, vertical pathway inhibition, immunotherapy, and emerging approaches such as degradation and RNA-targeted approaches are being explored to improve the depth and durability of response. Together, these advances signal a paradigm shift toward molecularly guided treatment strategies in PDAC and offer a promising path forward in a disease with substantial unmet clinical need.
MeSH Terms
Humans; Pancreatic Neoplasms; Proto-Oncogene Proteins p21(ras); Carcinoma, Pancreatic Ductal; Antineoplastic Agents; Molecular Targeted Therapy; Animals; Mutation