News Releases & Research Results Study finds new cells that inhibit the progression of pancreatic cancer ― Development of a new treatment that changes the surroundings of cancer cells is expected ―

Results of collaborative research and development by a group of Professor Masahide Takahashi and Associate Professor Atsushi Enomoto of the Nagoya University Graduate School of Medicine, Professors Mitsuhiro Fujishiro and Teppei Shimamura of Nagoya University, Assistant Professor Yasuyuki Mizutani of Nagoya University Hospital, Professor Hisashi Haga of Hokkaido University, Professor Yoshiki Hirooka of the Fujita Health University, Director Makoto Matsuyama of Shigei Medical Research Institute, and others.

• The study identified Meflin, a specific marker of fibroblasts to inhibit pancreatic cancer, and found that the diversity of the properties of the fibroblasts that develop around cancer influences the proliferation and inhibition of cancer cells.
• It was made clear that changes in the number or properties of cancer-restraining fibroblasts affect the malignancy and grade of pancreatic cancer.
• A study with mice revealed that artificially increasing the cancer-restraining fibroblasts can inhibit the progression of pancreatic cancer and demonstrated that artificially modifying the properties of the stromal fibroblasts in pancreatic cancer may become a new therapeutic strategy.

This research and development was conducted with the support of Advanced Research & Development Programs for Medical Innovation and Project for Cancer Research and Therapeutic Evolution by AMED.

The results of research and development were published on August 22 in the online version of Cancer Research, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research.

Mizutani Y., et al. Meflin-positive cancer-associated fibroblasts inhibit pancreatic carcinogenesis, Cancer Research
DOI: 10.1158/0008-5472.CAN-19-0454