Pancreatic cancer: a major discovery opens the way to new treatments

While pancreatic cancer remains one of the most serious cancers, researchers at the University of San Diego have just identified an enzyme that promotes tumor growth. Thus paving the way for possible treatments.

With nearly 16,000 cases in France in 2023, pancreatic cancer is the 6th most common. However, with an increasing incidence, it is estimated that this cancer will be the 2nd leading cause of cancer death in our country by 2030.

In 90% of cases, pancreatic cancer appears in the form of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma. This type of cancer develops from the cells that produce pancreatic juice, which is necessary for digesting food. And it is precisely from this form that scientists have just made a promising discovery.

200% Deposit Bonus up to €3,000 180% First Deposit Bonus up to $20,000

MICAL2 enzyme

Scientists have in fact identified a new key player in the development of this cancer: the MICAL2 enzyme. This protein, usually involved in the movement and morphology of cells, turns out to be a real fuel for pancreatic tumors.

The authors have in fact observed 3 elements:

Among patients undergoing surgery to remove pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma, those whose tumor cells had low MICAL2 expression survived twice as long as those whose tumor cells produced more of it. This suggests that MICAL2 may be involved in the progression of the disease to an advanced stage; The KRAS protein is known to be often involved in the emergence of cancer. It stimulates the growth of cancer cells. But deactivating the MICAL2 gene would significantly slow down the activity of KRAS. When tumor cells are deficient in MICAL2, the KRAS signaling pathway is unable to harvest the nutrients that lead to tumor growth; MICAL2 would facilitate the spread of cancer to other healthy organs.

There is no doubt for the authors, this enzyme could be a promising target for drug therapies against pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma. “Pancreatic cancer has the highest mortality rate of any common cancer, and current treatments are woefully inadequate,” says Andrew Lowy, MD, MD, MD, chief of surgical oncology at the University of California, San Diego. “We believe that it will be possible to target MICAL2 with drugs because it is a class of proteins that have already been successfully inhibited by drugs in other human diseases. We are currently working to identify drug candidates to begin blocking MICAL2 function in pancreatic cancer.”“