Mouse Models of Pancreatic Exocrine Cancer

Abstract

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDA) is virtually a lethal disease, with most patients dying of pancreatic cancer within one year of diagnosis. This poor prognosis, due to the innate resistance of PDA to both chemotherapy and radiotherapy, exists despite tremendous advances in our understanding of the molecular and cellular basis of PDA pathogenesis. Therefore, there is an urgent need to find molecular targets that can help to develop novel therapeutic approaches to improve the diagnosis and survival of PDA patients. The use of genetically engineered mouse models (GEMMs) of pancreatic cancer, as described here, have enabled a comprehensive investigation of the genetics and biology of the disease, opening new avenues to elucidate the molecular mechanisms involved in the pathogenesis of pancreatic cancer as well as the response to different therapeutic intervention strategies.