"The most exciting thing that's going on right now, is that some of the most common genetic mutations we know of in pancreatic cancer, are finally having drugs that seem to work against them," says Robert McWilliams, MD, a medical oncologist and the Deputy Director of OSF HealthCare Cancer Institute. "They're in clinical trials right now, but we may see drug approvals as early as this year for these new therapies called KRAS inhibitors. Almost all pancreatic cancer tumors have those mutations. If these drugs are as promising and work as well as we hope, it should make a tremendous difference for pancreatic cancer."

Why this moment matters in pancreatic cancer treatment

Historically, treatment options for pancreatic cancer have advanced slowly compared to other cancers.

"Pancreatic cancer treatment hasn't evolved as quickly as I'd like. We've had more complex chemotherapy regimens that work incrementally better," Dr. McWilliams says. "Trying to put those together into a plan for patients using more neoadjuvant therapies (giving chemotherapy to shrink a tumor before surgery) is something we've done a lot more of in the last few years."

Even with incremental improvements, outcomes have remained challenging – largely because of how pancreatic cancer behaves.

The challenge of a “silent” disease

Pancreatic cancer, one of the deadliest forms of gastrointestinal cancer, is often diagnosed late, when treatment options are more limited. According to 2015-2021 data from the National Cancer Institute, only 13.3% of people survived five or more years after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. Nearly 68,000 people were diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2025, almost 52,000 of them died from the disease.

"One of the things that's most challenging about pancreatic cancer, is that it can be there without causing specific symptoms. Even though a lot of people with advanced pancreatic cancer do have symptoms commonly, it is a very difficult cancer to detect early," Dr. McWilliams says. "Because of that, oftentimes people present with advanced or metastatic disease.”

Therapeutic cancer vaccines are also in development right now. Promising results from post-operative mRNA-based vaccines have suggested an immune response is possible, and patients may have better outcomes. More trials are in progress to evaluate this further.  

Targeting KRAS: A long-standing goal

According to the Lustgarten Foundation, the largest private funder of pancreatic cancer research in the world, KRAS mutations are central to the disease.

KRAS is a gene that helps control when cells grow and divide. Normally, it works like a switch, turning growth on when the body needs it, and off when it doesn’t. But when KRAS mutates, that switch can get stuck in the “on” position, causing cells to grow nonstop and eventually form cancer.

While KRAS mutations are found in about 11% of all cancers, pancreatic cancer depends on it more than almost any other. In fact, more than 90% of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinomas – the most common type of pancreatic cancer – have a KRAS mutation. That’s why researchers see KRAS as one of the most important and promising targets in the fight against pancreatic cancer.

One of the biggest challenges right now is creating drugs that can shut down the KRAS mutations most seen in pancreatic cancer, especially KRAS-G12D, which shows up in nearly half of all cases. Another key goal is developing treatments that can target several KRAS mutations at the same time. The good news: researchers are actively working on it, with more than 60 RAS-focused drugs currently in development.

New drugs moving through late-stage trials

According to Revolution Medicines, Inc., a late-stage clinical oncology company developing targeted therapies for patients with RAS-addicted cancers, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted a non-transferrable voucher for its drug daraxonrasib (RMC-6236) under the FDA’s Commissioner’s National Priority Voucher pilot program.

Daraxonrasib is being studied in two global Phase 3 clinical trials: RASolute 302 in patients with previously treated metastatic pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma and RASolve 301 in patients with previously treated metastatic non-small cell lung cancer.

Symptoms that should not be ignored

Even with promising advances, early detection remains critical.

"One of the things is called painless jaundice. If you turn yellow (jaundice), and you're not having abdominal pain, that is a classical sign for pancreatic cancer," Dr. McWilliams points out. "The most common symptom people notice is weight loss. Most of us are trying to lose weight at any moment in time, but sometimes it's a little too easy and the weight starts dripping off. When that happens, that's something to say 'hey, that's great!' But maybe I should get that checked out."

Reducing cancer risk and improving outcomes

Dr. McWilliams says lifestyle choices can play an important role in reducing cancer risk and improving outcomes after diagnosis:

• Don’t smoke cigarettes
• Don’t vape
• Avoid drinking alcohol
• Maintain a healthy lifestyle, including a healthy weight and regular physical activity

Those diagnosed with cancer tend to do better when they engage in more physical exercise. Regular activity can also help protect against other health concerns, including heart disease, neurological disorders and chronic illness.

Video Interview Clips

Diabetes: a recap

Aminat Ogun, MD, a family medicine physician at OSF HealthCare, recaps Types 1 and 2 diabetes and where Type 1.5 fits in:

• Type 1: Dr. Ogun says the body’s immune system attacks insulin-producing cells in the pancreas.
  
  “Insulin is a hormone that brings glucose from food from the blood to the body’s cells for energy. So in Type 1 diabetes, the pancreas isn’t producing insulin,” Dr. Ogun explains. “This type of diabetes is usually seen in childhood and adolescence. It’s sudden onset. Symptoms are increased urination, increased thirst, weight loss and blurry vision. A lot of these people are dependent on insulin shots.”
   
• Type 2: The pancreas is producing insulin, but the body doesn’t recognize it. Dr. Ogun says these patients are typically age 40 and up, and the disease has a gradual onset.
  
  “Management is lifestyle modifications, like a healthy diet and physical activity,” Dr. Ogun says. “And there are medications to help control blood sugar like Metformin and Jardiance®, plus insulin shots.”
   
• Type 1.5: This is also called latent autoimmune diabetes in adults (LADA).
  
  “It’s a slow progressing form of Type 1 diabetes. It’s autoimmune like Type 1, but it’s usually seen in adults,” Dr. Ogun says. Symptoms are similar to Type 2 diabetes: fatigue, nausea and vomiting. Or, Dr. Ogun says some people may have little to no symptoms.

More on Type 1.5

So, if Type 1.5 diabetes can mimic Types 1 and 2, how do providers pin down a diagnosis?

Dr. Ogun says it’s something providers are learning more about and getting better at. She says providers will take a blood sample to look at your blood glucose and antibodies. Providers can also sample your blood or urine to look at your C-peptide level. C-peptide is a byproduct of insulin production, and if it’s low it’s cause for concern.

Treatment is similar to Type 2 diabetes: oral medication or an injectable GLP-1 medication like Ozempic®.

“But eventually once the autoimmune destruction happens, the person will need regular insulin,” Dr. Ogun says. “One good thing is that if you are aware the person might have Type 1.5, starting insulin earlier is a little bit better. Maybe that can preserve some of the cells in the pancreas and preserve some pancreas function.”

Shoring up your diet and exercise can also help.

Prevention

Dr. Ogun says since Type 1.5 diabetes is an autoimmune disease, there’s no bonafide way to prevent it. She adds there is a genetic component, meaning a child of someone with Type 1.5 is at a higher risk to get in themselves.

But, Dr. Ogun says sometimes education can be the best prevention. She says she’s happy Lance Bass has spoken out. Bass is active, fit and has diabetes – a sign that it can happen to anyone, and you should be aware of the disease.

Learn more

Read more about preventing and managing diabetes on the OSF HealthCare website.

Interview clips

Related stories

Prediabetes vs. diabetes: Pay attention to both
Managing holiday meals and diabetes
There's no magic weight loss drug

From Elon Musk to TikTokers, ongoing social media chatter claims drugs like Ozempic, Mounjaro and Wegovy are the magic way to weight loss.

There’s good news, says Aminat Ogun, MD, a family medicine physician at OSF HealthCare in Champaign, Illinois. Those drugs can help you lose weight when prescribed by a doctor under specific circumstances and paired with diet and exercise.

The more important bad news? There’s no magic, one-size-fits-all drug that will by itself cause you to shed pounds. And if someone on social media is claiming so, they’re wrong.

Dr. Ogun says Ozempic, Mounjaro and Wegovy are from the same family of medicine. They are usually prescribed to people with Type 2 diabetes.

“It increases the insulin in the body, which helps bring glucose into the cells,” Dr. Ogun explains.

The medications also slow food leaving your stomach and suppress appetite.

Once the drugs became more well known, Dr. Ogun says people found, not surprisingly, that weight loss was a side effect and began prescribing them for that purpose under specific circumstances. She says the patient should have a body mass index (BMI) greater than 30 or a BMI greater than 27 with a chronic condition like diabetes, hypertension or hyperlipidemia.

But even if you meet those guidelines, Dr. Ogun says you should talk with your doctor about whether a weight loss drug is right for you or whether simply changing habits can get the results you want.

For one, Ozempic, Mounjaro and Wegovy are expensive and may not be covered by insurance.

Also, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration reports a shortage of Ozempic and Wegovy. So Dr. Ogun says doctors may be less likely to prescribe the drugs for weight loss when diabetics may have a more critical need.

And like any other medication, there is a list of side effects.

“Abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and constipation are possible,” Dr. Ogun says. “There are also hypersensitivity side effects like angioedema and an anaphylaxis reaction. It’s also been known to cause kidney injury or pancreatitis.”

Lately, the term “Ozempic face” has been trending on social media, describing a hollowed-out appearance due to quick weight loss.

One last piece of advice you’ll hear doctors give over and over: don’t rely on social media for health tips. If you find a tip that might benefit you, talk to your doctor before starting any treatment.

“The good thing about social media is that it allows a lot of people to receive a variety of information all at once,” Dr. Ogun says. “The downside: is it a credible source?”

Find a primary care provider on the OSF HealthCare website.

Interview clips