A team of researchers including David E. Lebwohl, MD (Damon Runyon Fellow ‘86-‘87), Novartis Oncology, Florham Park, New Jersey, reported the results of a Phase 3 trial demonstrating the efficacy of Everolimus/Afinitor in patients with pancreatic neuroendocrine cancer. The median progression-free survival was 11.0 months with everolimus as compared with 4.6 months with placebo, with limited side effects. As these patients have few treatment options, this finding is likely to be rapidly applied in the clinic. The targeted drug blocks a protein called mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR), which stimulates cell proliferation and tumor angiogenesis. This study was published in The New England Journal of Medicine.