Chapter 69
New Pharmacological Approaches for Pancreatic Cancer Therapy
A Light at the End of the Tunnel?
Vineet K. Gupta,
Sulagna Banerjee,
Ashok K. Saluja,
Vineet K. Gupta
Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center and DeWitt Daughtry Family Department of Surgery, University of Miami, Miami, FL, USA
Search for more papers by this authorSulagna Banerjee
Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center and DeWitt Daughtry Family Department of Surgery, University of Miami, Miami, FL, USA
Search for more papers by this authorAshok K. Saluja
Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center and DeWitt Daughtry Family Department of Surgery, University of Miami, Miami, FL, USA
Search for more papers by this authorVineet K. Gupta,
Sulagna Banerjee,
Ashok K. Saluja,
Vineet K. Gupta
Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center and DeWitt Daughtry Family Department of Surgery, University of Miami, Miami, FL, USA
Search for more papers by this authorSulagna Banerjee
Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center and DeWitt Daughtry Family Department of Surgery, University of Miami, Miami, FL, USA
Search for more papers by this authorAshok K. Saluja
Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center and DeWitt Daughtry Family Department of Surgery, University of Miami, Miami, FL, USA
Search for more papers by this authorBook Editor(s):J. Enrique Domínguez-Muñoz MD, PhD,
J. Enrique Domínguez-Muñoz MD, PhD
Director
Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, University Hospital of Santiago de Compostela, Santiago de Compostela, Spain
Search for more papers by this authorFirst published: 16 April 2021
Summary
Pancreatic cancer is one of the most aggressive malignancies worldwide, with a five-year survival rate of only 9%. Treatment of pancreatic cancer involves a multidisciplinary approach using chemotherapy, surgery, radiation therapy, and palliative care, which are selected based on stage of the disease. One of the main challenges when faced with this deadly disease is the heterogeneity among patients with regard to symptoms, genetic mutation, tumor evolution, sensitivity to treatments, and predisposition to early metastasis. Desmoplasia, one of the key features of pancreatic tumors, is responsible for the low survival rate in patients with this cancer. Surgical resection of tumor remains the best curative treatment available to pancreatic cancer patients. Understanding the pathogenesis of pancreatic cancer has revealed various potential targets for the development of effective therapy. Metabolic inhibitors or antimetabolites have been used in cancer therapy for more than 50 years.
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