Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2023 May 26;30(6):5322-5336.
doi: 10.3390/curroncol30060404.

Review of Current Systemic Therapy and Novel Systemic Therapy for Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma

Affiliations
Review

Review of Current Systemic Therapy and Novel Systemic Therapy for Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma

Humaira Sarfraz et al. Curr Oncol. .

Abstract

Background: This review aims to describe the systemic treatment options for pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma and includes a summary of the current treatments as well as the ongoing clinical trials which may be efficacious in the treatment of this aggressive malignancy.

Methods: A literature review was performed using MEDLINE/PubMed between August 1996 and February 2023. The reviewed studies are categorized into these categories: current standard of care treatments, targeted therapies, immunotherapy and clinical trials. The current treatment modality for the treatment of advanced pancreatic cancer is mainly systemic chemotherapy.

Results: The introduction of polychemotherapy regimens including gemcitabine/nab-paclitaxel and FOLFIRINOX (oxaliplatin, irinotecan, folinic acid and fluorouracil) has improved the clinical outcome of advanced pancreatic cancer. For further improvement in clinical outcomes, several novel approaches have been extensively studied in pancreatic cancer. The review discusses the current standard chemotherapy regimen and the novel treatment options in the field.

Conclusions: While there are novel treatments being explored for metastatic pancreatic, it remains a debilitating and aggressive disease with high mortality that warrants continued efforts to advance therapeutic options.

Keywords: chemotherapy; pancreatic adenocarcinoma.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

D.W.K.: honorarium from AstraZeneca and research support from BOLD therapeutics. The other authors declare no conflict of interest.

References

    1. Siegel R.L., Miller K.D., Wagle N.S., Jemal A. Cancer statistics, 2023. CA A Cancer J. Clin. 2023;73:17–48. doi: 10.3322/caac.21763. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Rahib L., Smith B.D., Aizenberg R., Rosenzweig A.B., Fleshman J.M., Matrisian L.M. Projecting cancer incidence and deaths to 2030: The unexpected burden of thyroid, liver, and pancreas cancers in the United States. Cancer Res. 2014;74:2913–2921. doi: 10.1158/0008-5472.CAN-14-0155. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Chawla A., Molina G., Pak L.M., Rosenthal M., Mancias J.D., Clancy T.E., Wolpin B.M., Wang J. Neoadjuvant Therapy is Associated with Improved Survival in Borderline-Resectable Pancreatic Cancer. Ann. Surg. Oncol. 2020;27:1191–1200. doi: 10.1245/s10434-019-08087-z. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Murphy J.E., Wo J.Y., Ryan D.P., Jiang W., Yeap B.Y., Drapek L.C., Blaszkowsky L.S., Kwak E.L., Allen J.N., Clark J.W., et al. Total Neoadjuvant Therapy with FOLFIRINOX Followed by Individualized Chemoradiotherapy for Borderline Resectable Pancreatic Adenocarcinoma: A Phase 2 Clinical Trial. JAMA Oncol. 2018;4:963–969. doi: 10.1001/jamaoncol.2018.0329. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Chandrasegaram M.D., Goldstein D., Simes J., Gebski V., Kench J.G., Gill A.J., Samra J.S., Merrett N.D., Richardson A.J., Barbour A.P. Meta-analysis of radical resection rates and margin assessment in pancreatic cancer. Br. J. Surg. 2015;102:1459–1472. doi: 10.1002/bjs.9892. - DOI - PubMed

MeSH terms