Pancreatic cancer is the fifth leading cause of cancer death in the United States. According to the American Cancer Society, approximately 28,000 people will die of pancreatic cancer in the United States in 1998. A high risk of developing pancreatic cancer, without a corresponding increase in the risk of developing other cancers, may be passed along in some families. Pancreatic cancer is most likely caused by an accumulation of mutations in specific cancer-causing genes. Pancreatic cancer is very aggressive and chemotherapeutic agents which may be active against other malignancies do not work effectively when used for pancreatic cancer.
The majority of cells in the pancreas are in the exocrine glands, which produce pancreatic enzymes, and in the ducts that carry the pancreatic enzymes to the bile duct and to the small intestine. Cancers of the exocrine cells of the pancreas are usually adenocarcinomas. Pancreatic adenocarcinomas usually begin in the ducts of the pancreas, but may sometimes develop from the acinar cells. About 95% of cancers of the pancreas are adenocarcinomas. Less common cancers of the exocrine pancreas include adenosquamous carcinomas, squamous cell carcinomas, and giant cell carcinomas.
Because pancreatic cancer is an aggressive cancer with very high mortality, there is a need in the art for genes that are up- or down-regulated in tumor progression. Such genes are useful for therapeutic purposes and for diagnosis of pancreatic as well as other cancers.