Verastem, Inc. is a late-stage development biopharmaceutical company, which focuses on the development and commercialization of new medicines to improve the lives of patients diagnosed with ras sarcoma (RAS)/ mitogen-activated pathway kinase (MAPK) pathway-driven cancers. Its product candidates include avutometinib and defactinib. Avutometinib is an oral RAF/MEK clamp that inhibits MEK1/2 kinase activities and induces inactive complexes of MEK with A-Raf proto-oncogene, potentially serine/threonine kinase (ARAF), B-Raf proto-oncogene serine/threonine kinase (BRAF) and C-raf proto-oncogene serine/threonine kinase, creating antitumor response through maximal RAS/MAPK pathway inhibition. Defactinib is an oral, selective inhibitor of FAK and proline-rich tyrosine kinase (PYK2), the two members of the focal adhesion kinase family of non-receptor protein tyrosine kinases. FAK and PYK2 integrate signals from integrin and growth factor receptors to regulate cell proliferation.