Zev A. Wainberg

Zev A. Wainberg, MD is Co-Director of the UCLA Gastrointestinal Oncology Program and Professor of Medicine in the Division of Hematology/Oncology at UCLA Health Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center. He is one of the most active phase I and translational clinical investigators in GI oncology in North America, with a particular focus on pancreatic cancer, gastric cancer, and the development of KRAS-targeted therapies. Dr. Wainberg is at the forefront of the field's effort to directly inhibit KRAS G12D — the most common KRAS mutation in PDAC (occurring in approximately 40% of patients) — through agents such as MRTX1133 (mirati/Bristol Myers Squibb) and other covalent or non-covalent G12D inhibitors. Following the breakthrough approval of sotorasib and adagrasib for KRAS G12C-mutated NSCLC, direct KRAS G12D inhibition represents one of the most consequential unmet needs in PDAC and one of the most intensely pursued targets in oncology drug development. Dr. Wainberg has been a principal investigator for multiple first-in-human phase I trials evaluating KRAS G12D inhibitors in PDAC and other KRAS G12D-driven solid tumors, and has contributed to defining the clinical pharmacology, preliminary efficacy signals, and combination strategies for these agents. Beyond KRAS targeting in PDAC, Dr. Wainberg has led influential clinical trials in gastric/gastroesophageal junction cancers, including studies of anti-HER2 agents, anti-VEGFR2 agents, and immunotherapy combinations, and has made significant contributions to the clinical development of tucatinib in GI cancers and novel anti-tumor microenvironment strategies.