title: Therapeutic tools in pancreatic cancer.
abstract: Pancreatic cancer is the fourth leading cause of cancer death in the United States and has a lower survival rate than other digestive tract tumors. It remains a therapeutic challenge with limited active agents. Honing our current understanding of markers of toxicity and response, and individualizing treatment with the prognostic and therapeutic tools available are important to make a worthy impact on a patient's course. The authors summarize selected abstracts from the ASCO Gastrointestinal Cancers Symposium, San Francisco, CA, USA, January 15-17, 2009. The Symposium featured pancreatic cancer in 84 research abstracts, of which, seven are reviewed that focus on markers of toxicity: cytidine deaminase (Abstract #151) and haptogloin (Abstract #167) as markers of gemcitabine toxicity; markers of response: use of PET scan for prognosis (Abstract #157), and correlations with CA 19-9 to post-chemo-radiation resectability (Abstract #215) and time to progression (Abstract #160); and individualized applications: characterizing the phenotypic similarities between a patient tumor and the direct xenograft (Abstract #154) and a report about the poor outcome of patients with ascites (Abstract #220). Validated clinical tools that can assist in managing patients through the narrow therapeutic window are needed.
authors.affiliation: Yale Cancer Center, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, USA.
authors.forename: Christopher J
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Hoimes
authors.forename: Alexios S
authors.initials: AS
authors.lastname: Strimpakos
authors.forename: Muhammad Wasif
authors.initials: MW
authors.lastname: Saif
mesh_terms: D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor / Q000097:blood; D018395:CA-19-9 Antigen / Q000097:blood; D003131:Combined Modality Therapy; D003841:Deoxycytidine / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000031:analogs & derivatives / Q000627:therapeutic use; D006242:Haptoglobins / Q000032:analysis; D006801:Humans; D010179:Pancreas / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D010190:Pancreatic Neoplasms / Q000097:blood / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000628:therapy*; D049268:Positron-Emission Tomography; D011379:Prognosis; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D000093542:Gemcitabine
chemical_list: D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor; D018395:CA-19-9 Antigen; D006242:Haptoglobins; D003841:Deoxycytidine; D000093542:Gemcitabine