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Pancreatic cancer, an announcement from Spain: "Tumor eliminated in mice" [lamilano.it]:

New hope for pancreatic cancer research comes from Spain: Mariano Barbacid, director of the Experimental Oncology group at the Spanish National Cancer Research Center (CNIO), has announced the results of a mouse study demonstrating the elimination of cancer cells from the most common and devastating type of pancreatic cancer, pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC).

The research revealed a significant reduction in side effects from the therapy, which achieved a previously unseen duration of tumor cell elimination. "For the first time," Barbacid explained, "we have achieved a complete, durable, and low-toxicity response against pancreatic cancer in experimental models. These results indicate that the combination therapy strategy can change the course of this tumor." The oncologist presented the findings together with the study's co-author, Carmen Guerra, and the first authors, Vasiliki Liaki and Sara Barrambana, during a press conference. The study was published in PNAS (Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences).

The key to the treatment used in the study is a combination of three drugs that target the fundamental mechanisms that allow tumor cells to grow: two targeting EGFR and STAT3, key proteins in pancreatic cancer, and one targeting the KRAS oncogene, the main driver of this tumor. Regarding next steps, Barbacid specified: "It's important to understand that, although experimental results like those described here have never been obtained before, we are not yet able to conduct clinical trials with triple therapy."

The first molecularly targeted drugs for pancreatic cancer were approved in 2021, after half a century of no improvement compared to conventional chemotherapy. The researchers note on the CNIO website. These new drugs block the action of KRAS, a gene mutated in 90% of pancreatic cancer patients. However, their efficacy is modest because the tumor becomes resistant after a few months. This problem of resistance to KRAS inhibitor drugs is addressed by the new study, a pioneering effort both in KRAS research and in the development of animal models for pancreatic cancer.

(Adnkronos)

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