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Research Project Summary: Disabling Metastasis in Pancreatic Cancer
Pancreatic cancer outcomes remain poor, even for the ~20% of patients that present with early-stage disease that can be treated with surgical removal of the primary tumor. These patients, who typically undergo months of chemotherapy followed by surgery, frequently recur with metastasis within just a few years after treatment. This illustrates the fact that pancreatic cancer cells spread to distant organs early in disease, and disseminated tumor cells are resistant to current therapies. To achieve long-term survival, there is a critical need for novel approaches to eliminate disseminated tumor cells and prevent future outgrowth.
Previous studies conducted at MCW demonstrated that liver damage caused by chemotherapy may incidentally accelerate pancreatic cancer liver metastasis. The research funded by VLCF will determine if disrupting liver-derived signals that support disseminated cancer cells can prevent the outgrowth of liver metastases. The major goal is to reveal novel therapeutic opportunities and ultimately preventing metastatic progression in patients, leading to increased long-term survival.
If successful, this approach could be applied to other cancers that commonly metastasize to the liver, including colorectal, breast, and lung cancer, potentially improving treatment options for thousands of cancer patients.
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