Researchers from the Institute of Cancer Research in London identified a protein, GREM1, essential in regulating pancreatic cancer tumor cells. Their study used two models, a mouse model, and a tumor organoid model. By switching the protein GREM1 on and off, the authors showed that different levels of GREM1 could either produce more aggressive and invasive tumor cells or revert tumor cells to less aggressive forms. While those results are still preliminary, the authors hope their findings could help develop new treatments for pancreatic cancer, which has proven, so far, very difficult to treat. The study was published in Nature.

In a study conducted at the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center, the authors show that surveillance programs for people at high risk of developing pancreatic cancer are crucial for effectively treating this type of cancer. “The five-year survival to date of patients with a surveillance-detected pancreatic cancer is 73.3%, and median overall survival is 9.8 years, compared with 1.5 years for patients diagnosed with pancreatic cancer outside surveillance.” The study was published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology.