Tejas Patil, MD and Jie Wu, PhD, Announced as Recipients of RETpositive/LUNGevity Research Award

Innovative research builds on existing breakthroughs to overcome drug resistance in RET-positive cancers

WASHINGTON, Oct. 28, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- The 2026 recipients of the RETpositive/LUNGevity Translational Research Award for RET-positive Cancer have been announced by LUNGevity Foundation and RETpositive. The awards support innovative research aimed at advancing treatment options and improving outcomes for people living with RET-positive cancer.

Alterations in the RET gene are known to drive several cancers. RET fusions, created when part of the RET gene joins with another gene, occur in 1% to 2% of non-small cell lung cancers. Changes to the RET gene are also found in thyroid, colon, breast, and other cancers. Currently, two RET tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) are approved by the US Food and Drug Administration to treat RET-positive cancer. Although these therapies can be effective, tumors eventually evolve to resist treatment and begin to grow again. Overcoming drug resistance is therefore a critical priority for patients with RET-positive cancers.

Through this award mechanism, RETpositive, a patient-led advocacy organization dedicated to raising awareness and advancing research for RET-positive cancers, aims to accelerate high-impact studies that address treatment resistance and transform the future for everyone diagnosed with RET-positive cancer.

"Patients cannot afford to wait. We need to be smart and efficient by supporting only the most promising ideas so they can become lifesaving treatments as soon as possible," said Emily Walthall, RETpositive board member living with stage IV RET-driven lung cancer. "Through our partnership with LUNGevity, we are building novel combination approaches to treatment that are designed to overcome drug resistance in RET-positive cancers."

The recipients of the 2026 RETpositive/LUNGevity Translational Research Award for RET-positive Cancer are:

Researcher: Tejas Patil, MD
Institution: University of Colorado Denver, AMC and DC
Project: Targeting cell cycling vulnerabilities in RET-fusion positive NSCLC
Total Award: $140,000

Drug resistance to RET TKIs is caused by drug-tolerant persister (DTP) cells that adapt and evolve to evade treatment. In this project, Dr. Patil aims to understand how these DTP cells survive and how to eliminate them before resistance develops. There are special cellular pathways that are known to help DTP cells survive. Dr. Patil aims to overcome drug resistance by combining a drug that targets these pathways with a RET TKI. Because the drugs he plans to test are already used in other cancers, this approach could speed the development of effective new treatments for patients with RET-positive lung cancer.

Researcher: Jie Wu, PhD
Institution: University of Oklahoma
Project: Enhancing RET-targeted cancer therapy with antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs)
Total Award: $200,000

Cancer cells often acquire genetic mutations to work around targeted treatments and drive cancer growth. This moving target has made it difficult for researchers to develop enduring cancer treatments. In this project, Dr. Wu will investigate the use of TKIs in combination with FDA-approved antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) to kill proliferating tumor cells in residual tumors while sparing healthy cells. By targeting multiple mutations simultaneously, this work has the potential to stop drug resistance from developing in RET-positive cancer. If successful, Dr. Wu's research could offer a treatment strategy for RET-positive cancers that offers an enduring treatment benefit for patients.

"We are excited to partner with RETpositive to support this pan-cancer research award focused on overcoming drug resistance in RET-positive cancers," said Upal Basu Roy, PhD, MPH, Executive Director of LUNGevity Research. "Combining existing, approved treatments offers an effective and efficient path toward the development of lifesaving treatments. The impact of these research projects has the potential to be felt across the RET-positive cancer community by bringing the hope of long-lasting treatments to patients and their loved ones."

About RETpositive

RETpositive is a 501(c)(3) patient-driven group that aims to improve the quality of life and life expectancy of RET-positive cancer patients through increased awareness, community support and advocacy, and medical research funding for RET-driven cancer. For more information about RETpositive, please visit www.retpositive.org

About LUNGevity Foundation

LUNGevity Foundation is transforming what it means to be diagnosed and live with lung cancer. While many organizations focus on one aspect of lung cancer, LUNGevity works across research, advocacy, and patient support, because lasting progress requires connecting all three. 

As the largest nonprofit funder of lung cancer research in the United States, LUNGevity drives progress in early detection, more effective treatments, and the next generation of researchers. We empower people diagnosed with lung cancer and their caregivers with scientifically vetted information, resources, and community and advocate for policies that improve access to screening, biomarker testing, treatment, and high-quality care for all.

By connecting scientific discovery, patient experience, and advocacy, we help ensure research reflects what patients need, breakthroughs reach the people who can benefit from them, and patient voices help drive meaningful change.

Our vision is a world where no one dies of lung cancer.

Please visit www.LUNGevity.org to learn more. 

About Lung Cancer in the US

• About 1 in 19 Americans will be diagnosed with lung cancer in their lifetime.
• More than 229,000 people in the US will be diagnosed with lung cancer this year, with a new diagnosis every 2.3 minutes.
• It is estimated that close to 65% of all new lung cancer diagnoses are among people with no tobacco exposure or only past tobacco exposure.
• More lives are lost to lung cancer than to the next two deadliest cancers (colorectal and pancreatic) combined.
• Only 29.5% of all people diagnosed with lung cancer will survive 5 years or more, but if it's caught before it spreads, the chance of 5-year survival improves to 65%.

SOURCE LUNGevity Foundation