In October 2025, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted Fast Track designation to a new treatment called VT3989 for people with unresectable (inoperable) mesothelioma. This applies to patients whose cancer has continued to grow after chemotherapy and immunotherapy.<\/p>\n
This follows the Orphan Drug designation that VT3989 received in July 2025, which helps support the development of medicines for rare diseases like mesothelioma<\/a>.<\/p>\n Mesothelioma can return even after treatment, and when it does, it is often more aggressive and harder to treat. The Fast Track status means the FDA will work closely with Vivace Therapeutics, the company behind VT3989, to help move the drug through testing and review more efficiently.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are pleased to receive fast-track designation from the FDA for VT3989 in this patient population, which is in desperate need of new and effective therapeutic options.” VT3989 is an oral medication that targets a cancer growth pathway known as the Hippo pathway. This pathway helps control how cells grow and repair themselves. In some cancers, including mesothelioma, the pathway can get \u201cstuck on,\u201d allowing cancer cells to keep multiplying.<\/p>\n VT3989 works by blocking TEAD proteins, which are key parts of this growth system. When these proteins are blocked, cancer cells may stop growing or become more sensitive to other mesothelioma treatments<\/a>.<\/p>\n Earlier reports said VT3989 worked by blocking FAK and PYK2 proteins. New research shows it actually works by blocking TEAD proteins in the Hippo pathway. Because VT3989 focuses on cancer cells, it may cause fewer side effects than traditional chemotherapy<\/a>.<\/p>\n Get our Free Mesothelioma Guide<\/strong> to learn more about the latest treatments and clinical trials that are helping patients improve their prognosis.<\/p>\n Researchers are studying VT3989 in an ongoing clinical trial at hospitals in the United States and Australia. So far, the results have been promising. Some patients saw their tumors shrink or stop growing.<\/p>\n The drug worked for both pleural mesothelioma (in the chest) and peritoneal mesothelioma (in the abdomen). Most side effects<\/a> were mild to moderate and included fatigue, swelling, and protein in the urine.<\/p>\n The study is expanding to enroll more patients and will also test VT3989 combined with immunotherapy drugs like nivolumab (Opdivo\u00ae) and ipilimumab (Yervoy\u00ae)<\/a>. Researchers hope that combining these treatments will help patients live longer.<\/p>\n The FDA\u2019s Fast Track program helps new treatments for serious conditions move through the testing and approval process more quickly.<\/p>\n Here\u2019s what that could mean for patients and families:<\/strong><\/p>\n The Fast Track designation doesn’t mean the drug has been approved yet, but it’s a positive step that could help bring this treatment to patients sooner.<\/p>\n Each FDA milestone for VT3989 gives hope to patients and caregivers<\/a> who are waiting for better treatment options. Mesothelioma is a rare and aggressive cancer, but progress like this shows that researchers are moving in the right direction.<\/p>\n If you or someone you love has mesothelioma, our nurses and Patient Advocates are here to help.<\/p>\n Our team can:<\/strong><\/p>\n You don\u2019t have to face this alone. Contact Mesothelioma Hope now<\/a> or call (866) 608-8933<\/a> <\/strong>to speak with us and get the help you need.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" In October 2025, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted Fast Track designation to a new treatment called VT3989 for people with unresectable (inoperable) mesothelioma. This applies to patients whose cancer has continued to grow after chemotherapy and immunotherapy. This follows the Orphan Drug designation that VT3989 received in July 2025, which helps support…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":35,"featured_media":28952,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[268],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-28950","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mesotheliomahope.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28950","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mesotheliomahope.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mesotheliomahope.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mesotheliomahope.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/35"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mesotheliomahope.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=28950"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.mesotheliomahope.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28950\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mesotheliomahope.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/28952"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mesotheliomahope.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=28950"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mesotheliomahope.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=28950"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mesotheliomahope.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=28950"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\n\u2013 Dr. Sofie Qiao, president and CEO of Vivace Therapeutics<\/p><\/blockquote>\nHow VT3989 Works Against Mesothelioma<\/h2>\n
What We Know from Clinical Trials<\/h2>\n
What the New FDA Status Means for Patients<\/h2>\n
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Hope for Patients and Families<\/h2>\n
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