Cell Type of Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma Origin: Implications for Prognosis and Clinical Outcomes

Abstract

Background: Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is a devastating disease that has no effective early detection method or treatment to date.

Summary: The normal cell type that initiates PDAC, or its cellular origin, is still unknown. To investigate the contribution of distinct normal epithelial cell types to PDAC tumorigenesis, genetically engineered mouse models were used to show that both acinar and ductal cells are capable of giving rise to PDAC. These studies indicated that genetic mutations and pancreatic injury interact differently with each cellular origin to affect their predilection and process for forming PDAC. In this review, we summarize recent findings using various genetically engineered mouse models in the identification and characterization of the PDAC cell of origin. We also discuss potential implications for cellular origin on tumor development, PDAC transcriptional subtype, and disease prognosis of patients.

Key message: Although it is clear that both ductal and acinar cells have the potential to form PDAC, whether cellular origin can indeed influence patient prognosis and whether knowledge of cellular origin will aid in the diagnosis or treatment of patients in the future will need further study.

Keywords: Cellular origin; Intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasm; Pancreatic cancer; Pancreatic intraepithelial neoplasia; Transcriptional subtype.