Translational research in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma: current evidence and future concepts

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma(PDA) is one of the major causes for cancer death worldwide. Treatment of metastatic disease remains challenging as only certain patients benefit from advances made with the intensified chemotherapy regimen folinic acid, irinotecan and oxaliplatin, the epidermal growth factor receptor inhibitor erlotinib or the recently FDA-approved nab-paclitaxel. Up to date, no established approach for prediction of treatment response or specific treatment allocation exists. Translational research was able to identify a number of potential biomarkers that might help to improve the dismal prognosis of PDA by facilitating upfront treatment allocation. This topic highlight is focused on current evidence on potential biomarkers for tumor biology, prognosis and prediction of treatment efficacy.