title: Therapeutic potential of perineural invasion, hypoxia and desmoplasia in pancreatic cancer.
abstract: Pancreatic cancer is one of the most fatal human malignancies. Though a relatively rare malignancy, it remains one of the deadliest tumors, with an extremely high mortality rate. The prognosis of patients with pancreatic cancer remains poor; only patients with small tumors and complete resection have a chance of a complete cure. Pancreatic cancer responds poorly to conventional therapies, including chemotherapy and irradiation. Tumor-specific targeted therapy is a relatively recent addition to the arsenal of anti-cancer therapies. It is important to find novel targets to distinguish tumor cells from their normal counterparts in therapeutic approaches. In the past few decades, studies have revealed the molecular mechanisms of pancreatic tumorigenesis, growth, invasion and metastasis. The proteins that participate in the pathophysiological processes of pancreatic cancer might be potential targets for therapy. This review describes the main players in perineural invasion, hypoxia and desmoplasia and the molecular mechanisms of these pathophysiological processes.
authors.affiliation: Department of Hepatobiliary Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Medical College, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi, China.
authors.forename: Han
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Qingyong
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Ma
authors.forename: Qinhong
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.forename: Jianjun
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Lei
authors.forename: Xuqi
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Zheng
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Erxi
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Wu
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D054337:Cell Dedifferentiation / Q000187:drug effects; D015687:Cell Hypoxia / Q000187:drug effects*; D005355:Fibrosis; D006801:Humans; D009363:Neoplasm Proteins / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors* / Q000378:metabolism; D010190:Pancreatic Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D058954:Pancreatic Stellate Cells / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D052958:Tarlov Cysts / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D000970:Antineoplastic Agents; D009363:Neoplasm Proteins