Dana-Farber Cancer Institute has officially launched the Center for RAS Therapeutics

RAS Therapeutics is a multidisciplinary initiative designed to enhance scientific research, improve treatment strategies, and advance clinical care for patients with cancers driven by RAS mutations.

This new center aims to foster collaboration among Dana-Farber scientists, clinicians, industry partners, and academic institutions to expedite the development of targeted therapies for these challenging cancers. The Center for RAS Therapeutics will be co-directed by Dr. Alice Shaw and Dr. Andrew Aguirre. Dr. Shaw is a thoracic medical oncologist with extensive experience in developing targeted therapies for lung cancer, including RAS inhibitors.

Dr. Aguirre, a gastrointestinal medical oncologist, serves as a physician-scientist at both Dana-Farber and the Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT. He leads a research lab focused on RAS biology in pancreatic cancer and is well-known for his significant contributions to understanding RAS treatment resistance through various published studies.

“While RAS-targeting therapies hold tremendous promise, treatment resistance remains a significant problem that will require innovative combination therapy approaches. The landscape of new RAS inhibitors is highly complex, and centralized expertise is necessary to determine the right drug or combination of drugs for every patient.

We will work closely with other academic and industry partners with the goal to improve our understanding of treatment resistance across tumor types, to discover new vulnerabilities in RAS-driven cancers, and to conduct the most efficient clinical trials of new therapies,” – said Andrew Aguirre.

Mission and Goals of the Center

The overarching mission of the Dana-Farber Center for RAS Therapeutics is to discover and develop impactful therapies for patients with RAS-driven cancers. The Center’s goals include:

• Preclinical Studies: Conducting comprehensive research to understand RAS biology, test novel therapeutics, and elucidate resistance mechanisms.
• Combination Strategies: Designing effective combination therapies that can overcome resistance to existing treatments.
• Accelerated Clinical Trials: Rapidly activating and recruiting patients for the most promising clinical trials of RAS-directed therapies.
• Reverse Translational Studies: Learning directly from patient experiences to inform future research directions.
• Academic-Industry Collaborations: Building robust partnerships between academic institutions and industry leaders to enhance research efforts.

Specialized Expertise and Patient Support

The Dana-Farber Center for RAS Therapeutics provides specialized clinical expertise in managing RAS-driven tumors through seamless coordination with Dana-Farber’s treatment centers. The team includes leaders in clinical trial design who are dedicated to bringing promising new therapies directly to patients. Additionally, scientists at the Center focus on understanding the intricate biology of RAS signaling and its role in cancer progression, with the goal of identifying treatment vulnerabilities unique to RAS-driven tumors.

Understanding treatment resistance is another focus area for the Center. Despite promising early evidence demonstrating the efficacy of RAS inhibitors, nearly all patients experience some form of treatment resistance over time. By investigating these resistance mechanisms, researchers aim to prolong the benefits of RAS-directed therapies and develop effective combination treatments that could ultimately lead to cures.

“RAS is a major driver of some of our most challenging cancers, including lung, pancreatic, colorectal, and endometrial cancers, among others. Recently, there has been an explosion of new therapies targeting RAS-driven cancers, which has created unprecedented opportunities to help patients but has also revealed important challenges.

This new center will enable coordinated efforts among Dana-Farber researchers to advance the most promising new therapies to patients as rapidly as possible.” – said Alice Shaw, MD, PhD, a thoracic medical oncologist who was recently appointed chief of strategic partnerships at Dana-Farber.

The launch of the Dana-Farber Center for RAS Therapeutics marks a milestone in oncology research and treatment. By combining cutting-edge research with clinical expertise, the Center is poised to change treatment options for patients facing the challenges associated with RAS-driven cancers. As new therapies emerge from this initiative, Dana-Farber remains committed to improving patient outcomes through innovative approaches tailored to individual needs.

Dana-Färber Cancer Institute:

“We’re thrilled to announce the launch of Center for RAS Therapeutics to target the RAS oncogene in cancer. The first of its kind Center aims to advance new treatment approaches for patients with RAS mutant cancers.”

Amy C. Moore:

“Exciting news for those impacted by RAS-driven cancer, including lung cancer and GI cancers. Great team!”

Further Reading:

Breast Cancer Research Digest by Dana-Farber’s Breast Oncology Center

Dana-Farber Researchers to Present at the 2024 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium

2024 Hamburg Awardees for Advances in Biomedical Research and Clinical Medicine – Dana-Farber Cancer Institute