Using tumor biomarkers to tailor therapy in metastatic pancreatic cancer

New Rochelle, NY, June 6, 2019–A new pilot study demonstrated the feasibility of using molecular tumor markers as the basis for selecting the chemotherapeutic agents to use in patients with metastatic pancreatic cancer. Based on these promising results a larger phase II clinical trial has been initiated using molecular biomarkers to guide the choice of second-line therapies. The design, results, and implications of the initial pilot study are presented in Journal of Pancreatic Cancer, a peer-reviewed open access publication from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers. Click here to read the full-text article free on the Journal of Pancreatic Cancer website.

“A Pilot Trial of Molecularly Tailored Therapy for Patients with Metastatic Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma” was coauthored by Michael Pishvaian, MD, PhD, Georgetown University, Washington, DC and colleagues from Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, Georgetown University, and Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, PA.

The researchers designed a composite treatment algorithm based on three established predictive markers of response to chemotherapy. They tested tumor biopsy samples for the presence of these markers and, based on the results, assigned the patients to treatment with two chemotherapeutic agents most likely to elicit a response. The researchers reported promising progression-free survival and overall survival, with a partial response seen in 28% of patients and stable disease in 50% on completion of the study.

Journal of Pancreatic Cancer Editor-in-Chief Charles J. Yeo, MD, Department of Surgery, Thomas Jefferson University, states: “This important study solidifies the potential for a precision medicine approach to pancreatic cancer.”

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Journal of Pancreatic Cancer is the only peer-reviewed open access journal focused solely on pancreatic cancer. Led by Editor-in-Chief, Charles J. Yeo, MD, FACS, Samuel D. Gross Professor and Chairman, Department of Surgery, Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, PA, the Journal covers the clinical, translational and basic science of malignancies of the pancreas and the peripancreatic region. The Journal provides a single open forum for communicating the advancement of science and treatments for pancreatic cancer. Complete content can be viewed on the Journal of Pancreatic Cancer website.

Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers is a privately held, fully integrated media company known for establishing authoritative peer-reviewed journals in many promising areas of science and medicine, including Journal of Palliative Medicine, Journal of Adolescent and Young Adult Oncology, and Cancer Biotherapy and Radiopharmaceuticals. Its biotechnology trade magazine, GEN (Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News), was the first in its field and is today the industry’s most widely read publication worldwide. A complete list of the firm’s 80 journals, books, and newsmagazines is available on the Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers website.