WASHINGTON – October 29, 2026 -- LUNGevity Foundation and patient advocacy group RETpositive have awarded a combined $340,000 to two research projects targeting drug resistance in RET-positive cancers, where tumors eventually outlast the two FDA-approved RET tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs).
RET fusions drive 1% to 2% of non-small cell lung cancers
RET fusions occur when part of the RET gene joins with another gene. Beyond lung cancer, RET alterations appear in thyroid, colon and breast cancers. Both approved TKIs can be effective, but tumors evolve resistance and resume growth, which the organizations name as the critical priority for patients.
University of Colorado Denver team receives $140,000 to attack persister cells
Tejas Patil, MD, will study drug-tolerant persister (DTP) cells, which adapt to evade RET TKIs. His project, targeting cell cycling vulnerabilities in RET-fusion positive NSCLC, pairs a RET TKI with a drug aimed at the pathways that keep DTP cells alive. Because the drugs he plans to test are already used in other cancers, the approach could shorten development timelines.
University of Oklahoma project gets $200,000 to pair TKIs with antibody-drug conjugates
Jie Wu, PhD, will test RET TKIs combined with FDA-approved antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs). The aim is to kill proliferating tumor cells in residual tumors while sparing healthy cells. By hitting multiple mutations at once, the work seeks to stop resistance before it develops.
Both projects build on already-approved therapies
Upal Basu Roy, PhD, MPH, Executive Director of LUNGevity Research, said combining existing approved treatments offers an efficient route to new therapies. RETpositive board member Emily Walthall, who lives with stage IV RET-driven lung cancer, said "patients cannot afford to wait" and that the partnership backs only the most promising ideas.
Lung cancer burden frames the funding push
More than 229,000 people in the US will be diagnosed with lung cancer this year. Only 29.5% of those diagnosed survive five years, rising to 65% when the disease is caught before it spreads. LUNGevity describes itself as the largest nonprofit funder of lung cancer research in the United States.