Targeting the Metabolism of Rare Cancers

Rafael Pharmaceuticals is focused on developing therapies that act on the metabolism of rare cancers. It designs drugs that attack regulatory processes that are unique to cancer cells and not found in healthy ones. Its lead drug candidate, devimistat, targets enzymes that are involved in cancer cell energy metabolism and found in the mitochondria of cancer cells. We spoke to Sanjeev Luther, president and CEO of Rafael, about the company’s lead indication of pancreatic cancer, its drug discovery platform, and why it is focused on rare cancers.