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Two Drugs Stir Hope for Treatment of Deadly Pancreatic Cancer
Two Drugs Stir Hope for Treatment of Deadly Pancreatic Cancer
In separate clinical trials, two treatments showed promise that they could help patients with one of the most dire diagnoses in oncology.
An animated image showing the human body highlighting the pancreas. Shubhangi Ganeshrao Kene
By Rebecca Robbins and Gina Kolata
April 21, 2026
Two treatments being tested in clinical trials are raising hopes for patients with pancreatic cancer, which has long been one of the most dire diagnoses in oncology.
Researchers presented some of the promising data this week at a cancer conference in San Diego. The data was collected from a small number of patients and has not yet been published in a medical journal or reviewed by regulators. Neither drug has been approved for use.
Cancer of the pancreas, the gland buried deep in the abdomen that is involved in digestion and regulates blood sugar, kills more than 50,000 Americans each year, accounting for about 8 percent of cancer deaths in the United States. Many patients die within a year of diagnosis, and only 13 percent of people live for five years after being diagnosed.
There are few treatment options, and those that are available often do little to help, which is why the new drugs are generating so much excitement.
{snip}.
A correction was made on April 22, 2026: An earlier version of this article misstated the role that messenger RNA plays in a potential pancreatic cancer vaccine. It delivers instructions to produce a fragment of a patient’s tumor in order to instruct the body’s immune system to attack the tumor. It does not instruct the body to make a fragment of a virus.
When we learn of a mistake, we acknowledge it with a correction. If you spot an error, please let us know at corrections@nytimes.com.Learn more
Rebecca Robbins is a Times reporter covering the pharmaceutical industry. She has been reporting on health and medicine since 2015.
Gina Kolata reports on diseases and treatments, how treatments are discovered and tested, and how they affect people.
In separate clinical trials, two treatments showed promise that they could help patients with one of the most dire diagnoses in oncology.
An animated image showing the human body highlighting the pancreas. Shubhangi Ganeshrao Kene
By Rebecca Robbins and Gina Kolata
April 21, 2026
Two treatments being tested in clinical trials are raising hopes for patients with pancreatic cancer, which has long been one of the most dire diagnoses in oncology.
Researchers presented some of the promising data this week at a cancer conference in San Diego. The data was collected from a small number of patients and has not yet been published in a medical journal or reviewed by regulators. Neither drug has been approved for use.
Cancer of the pancreas, the gland buried deep in the abdomen that is involved in digestion and regulates blood sugar, kills more than 50,000 Americans each year, accounting for about 8 percent of cancer deaths in the United States. Many patients die within a year of diagnosis, and only 13 percent of people live for five years after being diagnosed.
There are few treatment options, and those that are available often do little to help, which is why the new drugs are generating so much excitement.
{snip}.
A correction was made on April 22, 2026: An earlier version of this article misstated the role that messenger RNA plays in a potential pancreatic cancer vaccine. It delivers instructions to produce a fragment of a patient’s tumor in order to instruct the body’s immune system to attack the tumor. It does not instruct the body to make a fragment of a virus.
When we learn of a mistake, we acknowledge it with a correction. If you spot an error, please let us know at corrections@nytimes.com.Learn more
Rebecca Robbins is a Times reporter covering the pharmaceutical industry. She has been reporting on health and medicine since 2015.
Gina Kolata reports on diseases and treatments, how treatments are discovered and tested, and how they affect people.