Systemic Therapy of Pancreas Adenocarcinoma: Where Are We and Where Are We Going?

摘要

Pancreas adenocarcinoma is characterized by both a rising incidence and mortality rate, with about a 1.5% incidence increase per year over the last decade. About 45,000 people in North America will be diagnosed with this disease in 2013, of which at least 50% will present with metastatic disease. It is anticipated that by 2020 pancreas adenocarcinoma will be among the leading causes of cancer-related mortality. These facts underscore the enormous challenge that this disease imposes. Modest and incremental therapeutic progress has accrued over the last few years and in parallel an increased understanding of the molecular and genomic characteristics of this disease, and thus, there is real optimism that meaningful improvements in outcome are on the horizon.