Dive Brief:

• Tango Therapeutics said Monday its experimental drug vopimetostat showed promise in a small trial in pancreatic cancer, with nearly all of the enrollees followed so far responding to a regimen that combined its medicine with Revolution Medicines’ closely watched treatment daraxonrasib.
• The data suggest vopimetostat outperformed daraxonrasib alone in a similar population of people whose disease had progressed after at least one treatment line, and exceeded Wall Street expectations. The company plans to initiate a Phase 3 trial later this year testing the combination. 
• Tango’s shares surged as much as 49% in morning trading Monday. Last month, the company surprised investors by announcing that it was focusing on the daraxonrasib combination rather than testing vopimetostat alone, which sparked a sell-off by some shareholders who believed the move was a sign that management had lost confidence in the drug.

Dive Insight:

Pancreatic cancer has long been seen as one of the toughest and deadliest tumors to treat. But a turning point has come in 2026, as Revolution’s drug nearly doubled survival in a Phase 3 study result that’s been hailed by oncologists as a medical breakthrough. The findings received a standing ovation last week at the American Society of Clinical Oncology’s annual meeting. And Revolution has received a special Food and Drug Administration voucher that could lead to a speedy approval. 

Tango’s results are fueling more optimism, suggesting that its method of attacking tumors — blocking an enzyme called PRMT5 that can drive cancer growth — might have additive benefits. Tango’s drug, vopimetostat, is one of many PRMT5-targeting agents in clinical development. Bristol Myers Squibb, Amgen and AstraZeneca are in the mix, too.

The company has been testing vopimetostat in a smaller group of patients than daraxonrasib has been studied in. In the trial reported Monday, investigators enrolled people whose disease had advanced after at least one treatment and who have both a “RAS” mutation and a genetic deletion called “MTAP.” Though RAS mutations are very common in pancreatic cancer, an estimated 18% to 37% of patients have a MTAP deletion.

Tango tested three different doses of vopimetostat in the study alongside a lower dose of daraxonrasib than Revolution is using in its own trials. It unveiled data from 12 enrollees who’d had at least 14 weeks of follow-up.

According to Tango, 11 of the 12 had responded to the treatment, meaning their tumors either disappeared or shrank significantly. A physician consulted by RBC Capital Markets had suggested a response rate in the range of 50% to 60% would be meaningful, analyst Leonid Timashev wrote in a note to clients.

The trial also is testing the combination in non-small cell lung cancer, although there are fewer enrollees so far. All three treatment recipients with lung tumors have responded to treatment, Tango said.

Enrollees experienced side effects like rash and mouth sores. Two enrollees who got the higher dose of vopimetostat reported adverse effects so severe that trial investigators decided not to test a higher dose.

While the results were viewed as positive for Tango, Wall Street analysts also reasoned that the data suggest daraxonrasib could become a backbone therapy for pancreatic cancer. Tango’s focus on moving the combination into first line treatment hint at a “potentially compelling” treatment regimen that eliminates the need for toxic chemotherapy, Mizuho analyst Joseph Catanzaro wrote.