Roche's New Drug Divarasib Shows "Best-in-Class" Potential for Lung Cancer

Roche just announced groundbreaking results from its Phase III Krascendo 1 study for divarasib, a new drug tackling a tough form of lung cancer. Presented at the 2026 European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) Congress and published in The New England Journal of Medicine, this next-generation drug significantly outperformed older treatments for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients with a specific KRAS G12C mutation. This is a big deal because divarasib showed superior results in a head-to-head comparison against current standard drugs like sotorasib (Amgen's Lumakras) and adagrasib (Bristol Myers Squibb's Krazati), reducing the risk of death by 44% and improving median overall survival to 17.7 months, compared to 12 months for existing options. The drug also boasted a better safety profile, with fewer severe side effects. These impressive results come after divarasib already received Breakthrough Therapy and Orphan Drug Designation from the FDA in recent years, highlighting the urgent need for better treatments for this specific type of lung cancer. What's next? Roche is now pushing forward with health authorities to get divarasib approved. If successful, this could quickly become the new standard of care, reshaping the market for KRAS G12C inhibitors and offering a major new hope for patients who have limited options after their initial treatments fail. The oncology world will be watching closely as this drug moves towards potentially saving more lives.