True epigenetic alterations are stable changes maintained across many generations. Since 5-Aza-CdR can modify the epigenetic landscape30, we assessed the impact of short term 5-aza-CdR treatment on AREG and EREG expression by treating cells with the indicated concentrations of 5-Aza-CdR for 24 or 72 hours. 5-Aza-CdR was removed and cells were either harvested immediately or maintained in culture for 10 days. As shown in Fig. 1E, expression of AREG and EREG was not only induced 20–40 fold and maintained in Panc1-2G6 cells following 5-aza-CdR treatment but continued to increase when kept in culture 10 days post 5-aza-CdR removal. Treatment of Panc1-3D7 cells only slightly increased transcription of AREG and EREG (Fig. 2F), suggesting these stable epigenomic modifications have already taken place. These data confirm that the integrin α6β4 contributes to the stable upregulation of pro-tumorigenic molecules AREG and EREG through epigenetic alterations.