title: Imaging and Therapy of Pancreatic Cancer with Phosphatidylserine-Targeted Nanovesicles.
abstract: Pancreatic cancer remains one of the most intractable cancers, with a dismal prognosis reflected by a 5-year survival of ~6%. Since early disease symptoms are undefined and specific biomarkers are lacking, about 80% of patients present with advanced, inoperable tumors that represent a daunting challenge. Despite many clinical trials, no single chemotherapy agent has been reliably associated with objective response rates above 10% or median survival longer than 5 to 7 months. Although combination chemotherapy regimens have in recent years provided some improvement, overall survival (8-11 months) remains very poor. There is therefore a critical need for novel therapies that can improve outcomes for pancreatic cancer patients. Here, we present a summary of the current therapies used in the management of advanced pancreatic cancer and review novel therapeutic strategies that target tumor biomarkers. We also describe our recent research using phosphatidylserine-targeted saposin C-coupled dioleoylphosphatidylserine nanovesicles for imaging and therapy of pancreatic cancer.
authors.affiliation: Division of Hematology and Oncology, Department of Internal Medicine, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, OH, USA.
authors.forename: Victor M
authors.initials: VM
authors.lastname: Blanco
authors.affiliation: Division of Hematology and Oncology, Department of Internal Medicine, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, OH, USA.
authors.forename: Tahir
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Latif
authors.affiliation: Division of Hematology and Oncology, Department of Internal Medicine, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, OH, USA; Division of Human Genetics, Department of Pediatrics, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, OH, USA.
authors.forename: Zhengtao
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Chu
authors.affiliation: Division of Hematology and Oncology, Department of Internal Medicine, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, OH, USA; Division of Human Genetics, Department of Pediatrics, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, OH, USA. Electronic address: xiaoyang.qi@uc.edu.
authors.forename: Xiaoyang
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Qi