Cancer gene suppresses pancreatic cancer

Gene suppresses development of pancreatic cancer

02/05/2012

According to an international study, the USP9X gene can suppress the development of the ductal adenocarcinoma of the pancreas. This new discovery could enable the very insidious and common cancer of the pancreas in the future better chances of recovery.

Pancreatic cancer has very poor chances of recovery
The so-called ductal adenocarcinoma of the pancreas, the most common type of cancer of the pancreas, is still a disease with a very poor prognosis and a high mortality rate. It is difficult to treat, because among other things, the diagnosis is usually made very late. In the initial stage of the disease hardly any complaints occur, so that sufferers often take very late to seek medical attention. Only in the later stages can it come to the typical complaints such as abdominal pain, jaundice, loss of appetite, underweight, nausea and vomiting as well as a possible feeling of pressure in the upper abdomen. But then, from a medical point of view, hardly any treatment successes can be achieved. The pain can also have different causes, so that a differentiated diagnosis is necessary. The symptoms often occur only when the cancer has already spread to neighboring organs such as the intestines or stomach. These tumors then lead to the aforementioned complaints. The pancreatic cancer itself usually causes hardly noticeable symptoms. The tumor is still only operable in about five percent of the diagnoses.

USP9X programmed cell death of tumor cells
The suppressive effect of the USP9X gene on the cancer cells gives hope for better chances of recovery in the future. For their research on pancreatic cancer, David Tuveson of the Cambridge Research Institute in the United Kingdom and his colleagues studied a corresponding mouse model. The researchers discovered the gene USP9X, which was previously not seen in connection with the ductal adenocarcinoma of the pancreas.

The researchers report in the latest issue of the International Science Journal „Nature "that the loss of the USP9X gene in the pancreatic carcinoma cell assembly protects the tumor cells from programmed cell death, thereby promoting cancer development.Christian Pilarsky from the Department of Visceral, Thoracic and Vascular Surgery of the University Hospital Carl Gustav Carus coordinated the German scientists. They found that in people with ductal adenocarcinoma of the pancreas, a lower production of USP9X was associated with higher mortality after surgery and an increased risk of metastases, indicating that the USP9X gene plays an important role in predicting those who may be affected and may become new in the future Open up treatment options.

Causes of the development of pancreatic cancer
The exact cause of the development of pancreatic cancer is still largely unknown despite many years of research. Recent scientific studies suggest that the first cell mutations occur 20 years before the actual onset of the disease. Therefore, according to British scientists, it is not surprising that the survival rate of the disease has hardly increased in the last 40 years. When diagnosed, pancreatic cancer is usually already extremely aggressive. A treatment then brings only rarely the desired success.

In addition to genetic predisposition, smoking, alcoholism, diabetes, severe overweight, cystic changes, and chemical contaminants are among the strong contributors to this cancer. Constant irritations, such as long-lasting pancreatitis, can cause more degeneration of the body's own cells, similar to the other cancers of the digestive organs. However, experts now assume that genetic disposition is the main cause of pancreatic cancer. (Ag)

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Picture: Sigrid Rossmann