Mary Ellen Hackett
Manager, Communications Office
Email maryellen.hackett@nih.gov or call 301-401-8670 for all media related questions.

Vertical RAS Pathway Inhibition Creates a Ferroptosis-Prone State in Pancreatic Cancer
KRAS pathway inhibition rewires PDAC metabolism, increasing oxidative stress—and revealing a new vulnerability: ferroptosis as a strategy to overcome resistance.POSTED: 4/13/2026
KRAS primes the road for WNT-driven tumour initiation
New research reveals that activating KRAS mutations can quietly expand in normal colon tissue and prime cells for cancer, overturning the long‑held idea that APC loss must always be the first step in colorectal tumorigenesis.POSTED: 3/16/2026
A new way to break drug resistance in KRAS-mutant lung cancer: Restoring PP2A to re-sensitize tumors to RAS/MAPK inhibitors
Resistance to RAS/MAPK inhibitors isn’t just about runaway kinases—it’s about silenced phosphatases. In this JCI study, Dr. Goutham Narla shows that KRAS-mutant tumors evade therapy by disabling PP2A, and that pharmacologically restoring phosphatase activity rewires signaling, blocks resistance, and delivers durable responses.POSTED: 2/16/2026
Exosomes in personalized medicine for pancreatic cancer
Nature’s own delivery system meets precision oncology: the decade-long journey of engineered exosomes to a first-in-human KRAS trial.POSTED: 1/12/2026
LZTR1: How it recognizes, binds, and degrades RAS proteins
New structures reveal how LZTR1 recognizes inactive RAS proteins for degradation, opening a new path to therapeutically eliminate oncogenic KRAS.POSTED: 12/15/2025
Unpacking the diversity among KRAS mutants
From KRAS G12D to KRAS G12R, new research uncovers how each mutation drives pancreatic cancer differently—and why it matters for patient outcomes.POSTED: 11/19/2025
The allele-specific lipid sensing of KRAS mutants
KRAS mutants don’t just anchor to membranes—they choose their lipid partners. Discover how this specificity could unlock new cancer therapies.POSTED: 7/8/2025
Therapeutic strategies to overcome KRAS (OFF) inhibitors resistance
Understanding and overcoming resistance to KRAS G12C inhibitors remains a key focus in the fight against RAS-driven cancers. Experts describe non-genetic methods of resistance to G12C inhibitors that bind to the inactive, GDP-bound form of the protein, and propose the best therapeutic strategy.POSTED: 9/26/2024
MAP2K4: New kid on the MAP Kinase block
Post-doc Robin A Jansen and her advisor Rene Bernards lay out a compelling argument for MAP2K4 inhibition as an effective combination therapy with RAS-targeted drugs.POSTED: 6/18/2024