Novel Diagnosis and Treatment Approaches in Pancreatic Cancer

A special issue of Cancers (ISSN 2072-6694). This special issue belongs to the section "Cancer Therapy".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 December 2025 | Viewed by 1738

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
Division of Gastroenterology, Graduate School of Medicine Sendai, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan
Interests: molecular mechanisms of pancreatic diseases; pancreatic fibrosis; biomarkers; genetics of pancreatic diseases; epidemiology
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Pancreatic cancer still remains intractable due to difficulty in early diagnosis, its rapid progression, and its resistance to conventional therapy. To overcome these difficulties, multidisciplinary approaches including the development of novel diagnosis and treatment approaches are urgently needed. Recently, we have seen progress in the early diagnosis of pancreatic cancer such as the risk-factor stratification of new-onset diabetes mellitus, the development of microRNA-based biomarkers and cell-free DNA, and the identification of rather specific imaging findings. Regarding treatments, the efficacy of neoadjuvant chemotherapy has been proven, drugs that disrupt the tumor–stromal compartment might be useful for improved drug delivery, and targeted agents based on genetic testing such as PARP inhibitors for BRCA pathway-deficient pancreatic cancer and immune checkpoint inhibitors have shown promising results.

In this Special Issue, we will share up-to-date research findings in this field. Articles dealing with a wide range of novel diagnosis and treatment approaches in pancreatic cancer are welcome. Examples include, but are not limited to, the early diagnosis of pancreatic cancer based on risk factors, novel biomarkers, and imaging modalities including artificial intelligence. Basic, translational, and clinical research papers are all welcome.

Prof. Dr. Atsushi Masamune
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • pancreatic cancer
  • pancreatic fibrosis
  • biomarker
  • risk factor
  • genetic testing
  • artificial intelligence
  • endoscopic ultrasound
  • stroma
  • cancer-associated fibroblasts
  • familial pancreatic cancer

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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Review

22 pages, 1524 KB  
Review
Strategies to Target the Tumor-Associated Macrophages in the Immunosuppressive Microenvironment of Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma
by Ryu Matsumoto, Kiyonori Tanoue, Chieri Nakayama, Masashi Okawa, Yuto Hozaka, Tetsuya Idichi, Yuko Mataki and Takao Ohtsuka
Cancers 2025, 17(18), 3090; https://doi.org/10.3390/cancers17183090 - 22 Sep 2025
Viewed by 158
Abstract
Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is a critical disease requiring the development of novel effective therapeutic approaches due to its increasing global incidence and associated low survival rates. While immunotherapy, including immune checkpoint inhibitors, has shown efficacy against various tumors, developing an effective treatment [...] Read more.
Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is a critical disease requiring the development of novel effective therapeutic approaches due to its increasing global incidence and associated low survival rates. While immunotherapy, including immune checkpoint inhibitors, has shown efficacy against various tumors, developing an effective treatment approach for PDAC poses a challenge. This is primarily attributed to the complex and distinctive immune evasion mechanisms of PDAC. Recent studies have revealed that tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs) play a crucial role in enhancing immune evasion in PDAC. This role is mediated through multiple pathways, including cytokine secretion and the activation or suppression of diverse immune cells. A clear understanding of how macrophages contribute to PDAC proliferation could lead to the development of novel immune therapy approaches targeting TAMs. In this review, we summarized the multifaceted activities and roles of TAMs in PDAC and explored the potential effect of immunotherapeutic approaches on PDAC, with a particular focus on chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) macrophages. This review was based on promising findings from recent studies on CAR macrophage-based immunotherapy for solid tumors. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Novel Diagnosis and Treatment Approaches in Pancreatic Cancer)
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21 pages, 561 KB  
Review
Postoperative Acute Pancreatitis After Pancreatic Resections—A Narrative Review and a Diagnostic Algorithm
by Ewa Grudzińska and Magdalena Gajda
Cancers 2025, 17(17), 2773; https://doi.org/10.3390/cancers17172773 - 26 Aug 2025
Viewed by 733
Abstract
Pancreatic cancer is one of the deadliest tumors, and surgery is, for now, the only potentially curative treatment. However, pancreatic surgery is burdened with severe complications, of which postoperative pancreatic fistula (POPF) is one of the most dangerous. Recent publications show that there [...] Read more.
Pancreatic cancer is one of the deadliest tumors, and surgery is, for now, the only potentially curative treatment. However, pancreatic surgery is burdened with severe complications, of which postoperative pancreatic fistula (POPF) is one of the most dangerous. Recent publications show that there is a strong connection between POPF and postoperative acute pancreatitis (POAP). In this review, we present the available literature on PPAP, summarizing the available diagnostic, prophylactic, and treatment tools. We identify POAP as a specific postoperative complication where a lack of unified definitions and treatment guidelines makes both research and clinical decisions more difficult. Based on the available studies, we also propose an algorithm for early POAP detection. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Novel Diagnosis and Treatment Approaches in Pancreatic Cancer)
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