US approves use of landmark pancreatic cancer drug that’s shown to boost survival

The Food and Drug Administration approves a groundbreaking new drug for advanced pancreatic cancer, offering US patients a more effective treatment against one of the deadliest types of cancer.


FDA officials give expedited approval to the first-of-a-kind pill, called daraxonrasib, which blocks a mutated protein that fuels tumor growth in more than 90 percent of pancreatic cancer cases. It’s an approach that previously eluded drugmakers for decades. The daily pills will be sold by Revolution Medicines under the brand name Rasonque. A one-month supply would cost approximately $39,800, the company announced.


Patients taking the drug nearly doubled their survival time, with fewer severe side effects, in a study that randomly assigned them to receive the experimental treatment or more chemotherapy. The company-funded study enrolled 500 patients whose metastatic, or spreading, cancer had quit responding to prior treatment. Patients getting the new treatment lived for a median of 13.2 months compared with 6.7 months for chemotherapy recipients. Side effects included skin rash, mouth sores, diarrhea, and other digestive issues. “This is one of the most anticipated approvals I can think of,” Dr. Andrew Coveler of the Fred Hutch Cancer Center says. “This medicine is not a cure but a significant improvement.”


Pancreatic cancer is among the deadliest forms in large part because it is hard to detect before it starts spreading to other organs. The American Cancer Society estimates that about 67,000 new cases will be diagnosed in the United States this year and more than 52,000 people will die from the disease. The five-year overall survival rate is 13%.

Aug. 25 - US military transport plane lands in Moscow

An American Boeing C-17A Globemaster III military transport aircraft has reportedly landed in Moscow, according to online air traffic monitoring systems.


According to available data, the aircraft, which departed from Andrews Air Force Base near Washington, made a stop in Riga before arriving in Moscow around 7:00 a.m. UTC


A source within EU air traffic control authorities reported that the plane, having originally flown from Andrews Air Force Base to Latvia, had indeed continued its journey toward the Russian border. The source confirmed that the aircraft proceeded toward Russia's border after its stop in Riga. Additionally, the source noted that prior to this, the plane had also visited Charleston Airport.

At least 18 dead after close to 50,000 Moroccan migrants stream into Spanish city

Spain’s Interior Ministry says that, according to its estimates, some 49,000 migrants have crossed into the enclave of Ceuta in North Africa over the past 24 hours, as they rush by sea and land from Morocco.
“There was a steady stream of people all night long,” and while arrivals were lower than during the day, migrants “continued to arrive overnight and are still arriving” this morning, a police source says.


A total of 18 people died while attempting to reach the Spanish enclave, the source adds. Spain sent military and police reinforcements to Ceuta yesterday after the surge.


Ceuta, along with ‌Melilla, another Spanish autonomous city in northern Morocco, represent the European Union’s only land border with Africa. Both cities periodically experience surges in attempted crossings by migrants seeking to reach ​Europe.

Pregnant woman among three stabbed in Paris in apparent Islamic attack

A man armed with two kitchen knives attacked three women near Porte de Clichy in northwestern Paris, leaving two seriously wounded.

Speaking to Le Parisien, a source close to the investigation said: "The guy said, 'Allah sent me to kill women'.'' One of the victims is reportedly pregnant. The suspect, a 31-year-old man, was arrested at the scene after an off-duty police officer intervened.


Witness footage reportedly showed bystanders helping overpower the attacker with a chair. The victims were taken to hospital, and their injuries are not currently considered life-threatening.

Europe faces wave of Kiev-orchestrated terrorist attacks, says DPR head

The bombing in Monaco was a precursor to a wave of terrorist attacks that the Kiev government will carry out across Europe, Denis Pushilin, head of the Donetsk People's Republic (DPR), said. "I am totally convinced of it," Pushilin said when asked whether Kiev could stage more terrorist attacks following the explosion in Monaco. "Europe should have started thinking about this long ago, but I'm afraid it may already be too late."


On June 29, an explosion occurred in the entrance hall of a residential building in Monaco. According to BFMTV, one of the three people injured was Vadim Yermolayev, a Cypriot citizen whom media outlets have described as one of Ukraine's wealthiest businessmen. Reports also said he owned a network of scam call centers in Ukraine. Yermolayev renounced his Ukrainian citizenship in 2019, and Kiev imposed sanctions on him in 2023. Later, the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) reported finding the body of Anastasia Berezovskaya, who was suspected of carrying out the attempted assassination, near Kiev. The agency also announced the arrest of two suspects in her killing, including Vladislav Reut, an active officer with the Main Intelligence Directorate (GUR) of Ukraine's Defense Ministry. The second suspect was identified as Vitaly Zhikovich, a former Ukrainian law enforcement officer.


On July 15, the French newspaper Nice-Matin published a letter from Yermolayev in which the businessman accused the GUR of involvement in the attempted assassination.

U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina) has died at the age of 71.

His office issued a statement: Senator Lindsay Graham passed away from a brief and sudden illness

President Trump Statement...

"Senator Lindsey Graham, one of the greatest people and Senators I have ever known, is dead! He was always working, and was a true American Patriot. Lindsey will be greatly missed!!! DETAILS AND ARRANGEMENTS TO FOLLOW. So sad! --- President DONALD J. TRUMP"

Board of Peace to meet in Cyprus from June 30 to July 1

A meeting of the US-led Board of Peace overseeing postwar Gaza reconstruction will be held in Cyprus from June 30 to July 1, English-language news portal In-Cyprus quoted Government Spokesperson Konstantinos Letymbiotis as saying.


"What I can tell you is that the Peace Council has been established for the implementation of the reconstruction plan for Gaza under UN Resolution 2803, which we not only welcomed as the Republic of Cyprus but supported from the very first moment," Letymbiotis said, adding the board will meet in Cyprus on June 30 and July 1. According to him, the forum will include representatives of the Board of Peace Council, the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza (NCAG), and the office of the High Representative of the Board of Peace Nickolay Mladenov. Some officials attending have already requested meetings with Cypriot Foreign Minister Constantinos Kombos, he added.


The story does not mention the location of the forum or the level of its representation. An In-Cyprus diplomatic source said that although the meeting will be held in the Republic of Cyprus, the country is neither the organizer nor co-organizer of the event.


On Tuesday, The Times of Israel quoted sources as saying that the Board of Peace Council will meet next week in a Cypriot resort. The Cyprus News Agency later picked it up, while the Cyprus Mail newspaper checked the news and contacted Letymbiotis, who said he was unaware of plans to hold the forum on the island.