All articles tagged with #pancreatic cancer
Former Nebraska senator Ben Sasse discusses his metastasized Stage 4 pancreatic cancer and other cancers in a candid interview, saying he has months to live but intends to redeem the time. He’s taking the experimental drug daraxonrasib, which has reduced tumor volume by about 76% though some tumors remain, and continues working and hosting his podcast while prioritizing time with his family amidst his health struggles.
A British couple on the Camino de Santiago experienced worsening stomach pain for husband David, 71; after returning to the UK, he was diagnosed with incurable pancreatic cancer and died about two weeks later, spending 12 days in hospice. His wife, Tacey, is fundraising for St Peter's Hospice through the Tour de Bristol to support end-of-life care.
A new book claims Prince Philip was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2013 and lived eight more years before his 2021 death, with doctors reportedly finding a pancreatic shadow and deeming the cancer inoperable; the piece also notes that King Charles’s cancer status has not been publicly disclosed beyond it not being prostate cancer.
Mission Viejo couple Zak and Cori Salazar, both diagnosed with cancer in 2023, face ongoing battles—Zak with glioblastoma and Cori with pancreatic cancer—while raising three young daughters; they lean on grief-aware parenting, death-doula guidance, and a daily commitment to living fully, even as a scare over a brain MRI led to halting Zak's chemo after it proved to be a false alarm.
CNIO researchers report a triple-drug regimen that blocks the KRAS signaling pathway at three points—using daraxonrasib, afatinib, and SD36—to induce durable tumor regression and prevent resistance in three mouse models of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) with minimal toxicity. While promising, they caution that the approach is not yet ready for clinical trials and would require further development to adapt for human use, per the PNAS study.
Pancreatic cancer rates are climbing fastest among younger adults, especially women under 55. A JAMA Network Open analysis highlights a rising incidence in ages 15–34, underscoring how difficult early detection is. Research from the Hebrew University identifies an “early warning signal”—pre-cancerous pancreatic cell clusters that dampen immune response years before symptoms—offering hope for earlier tests. In the meantime, be vigilant for sudden diabetes in adults with no obvious cause, plus weight loss, upper abdominal pain, jaundice, pale stools, and persistent indigestion. Modifiable risks include obesity, type 2 diabetes, smoking, alcohol, and processed meats. Early GP assessment after new symptoms can improve survival, as five-year survival remains around 7% in England.
Researchers identify a KRAS/ERK/JUNB signaling axis that suppresses the differentiation regulator GATA6, pushing pancreatic tumors from a classical, chemo‑sensitive state to a basal, chemo‑resistant one; inhibiting this pathway raises GATA6 levels, reverting cells to a more treatable state and enhancing the effectiveness of standard chemotherapy when paired with targeted therapies.
A Lafayette father with stage 4 pancreatic cancer is the first patient in Colorado to receive Zenocutuzumab, a newly FDA-approved targeted therapy that targets the tumor's NRG1 gene fusion after chemotherapy stopped working; since starting the drug, he has shown a dramatic response and improved quality of life, illustrating a broader shift toward precision medicine in pancreatic cancer that could extend survival for some patients.
Oliver ‘Power’ Grant, Wu-Tang Clan’s co-founder and executive producer on their debut, died at 52 after a battle with pancreatic cancer, a death announced days after the group’s Rock & Roll Hall of Fame nomination.
Oliver “Power” Grant, the Wu-Tang Clan’s longtime executive producer and driving force behind their early financing and branding, died at 52 after a courageous battle with pancreatic cancer. From financing their first single to producing Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) and founding Wu Wear, Grant is lauded by the group and family as a visionary and pillar of Wu-Tang culture, and a proud Park Hill (Staten Island) native whose impact on music and fashion endures.
Researchers identify a mechanism where the MYC protein shifts from DNA to nascent RNA under stress, using an RNA-binding region (RBRIII) to promote multimerization and recruit the nuclear exosome to degrade RNA at R-loops, thereby suppressing innate immune signaling (via TLR3 and TBK1) in pancreatic cancer. Mutating the RNA-binding region prevents this immune suppression and causes tumor regression in immunocompetent mice, suggesting therapies that block MYC’s RNA-binding function could expose tumors to immune attack while preserving MYC’s transcriptional activity.
The FDA approved Optune Pax, a wearable device delivering abdominal tumor treating fields (TTFields) to treat locally advanced pancreatic cancer in combination with gemcitabine and nab-paclitaxel, based on PANOVA-3 which showed longer median overall survival and pain-free survival with TTFields versus chemotherapy alone; skin reactions were common; the device costs about $21,000 per month and includes patches, a generator, and support services.
Researchers at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory uncovered a self-sustaining loop in early pancreatic cancer: myCAFs (fibroblasts) lure sympathetic nerves, whose norepinephrine signals activate the fibroblasts and recruit more nerves, accelerating tumor development. Blocking nerve activity slowed growth by about 50% in mice/human cell experiments, pointing to therapies that disrupt the nerve–fibroblast crosstalk alongside existing cancer treatments.
Pancreatic cancer, long seen as a disease of older people, is increasingly diagnosed in people in their 30s–50s as obesity and metabolic disease rise; doctors warn that its early signs are vague and often dismissed, contributing to diagnoses only after the cancer has spread in about 80% of cases, with five-year survival around 12%. The piece highlights rising incidence among younger patients, the role of risk factors like smoking, obesity, and genetics (BRCA/ATM), and new research on epigenetic changes in genes such as KLF5 that may fuel growth. It also offers lifestyle prevention tips—limiting red/processed meats and ultra-processed foods, cooking at home, eating lean proteins, and considering environmental exposures like pesticides—and notes advances in treatment (robotic Whipple surgeries, BRCA-targeted therapies) that improve outcomes when detected early.
A Medscape commentary summarizes the ten major risk factors for pancreatic cancer, including smoking, heavy alcohol use, high BMI, diabetes, dietary patterns, pancreatitis, age, family history, genetic predisposition, and premalignant lesions, and advocates prevention and risk‑based screening.