Nerve Growth Factors Elevated in Pancreatic Cancer Model

• Severe pain is a common symptom of pancreatic cancer.
• Levels of four neurotrophic factors were elevated in a pancreatic cancer model.
• Nerve bundles in the pancreas were larger and physical activity lower.

LAKE TAHOE, Nev. — Severe pain is a major symptom of pancreatic cancer. The results of a new study show that four different factors involved in the growth and maintenance of nerves are elevated in a mouse model of pancreatic cancer. This is a step forward in understanding the relationship between the development of pain and the progression of pancreatic cancer.

“When other researchers have looked at samples of pancreatic cancer, they have described perineural tumor invasion in as many as 90 to 100 percent of cases,” said Rachelle E. Stopczynski, a M.D./Ph.D. student at the University of Pittsburgh in Pa. “We used a mouse model of pancreatic cancer to look at what drives these interactions, and to investigate what role tumor-nerve interactions play in cancer progression.”

She presented these findings at the American Association for Cancer Research’s Pancreatic Cancer: Progress and Challenges conference, held here June 18-21.

Stopczynski and colleagues measured the levels of neurotrophic factors, which are proteins in charge of the growth and maintenance of nerve cells, in the pancreata of mice with a condition modeling pancreatic cancer and healthy controls aged between 16 and 30 weeks. They also measured the density and distribution of nerve fibers in the pancreas and observed levels of physical activity.

Expression levels of four neurotrophic factors were higher in the pancreata of mice with pancreatic cancer. Nerve bundles were also observed to be larger and the overall physical activity undertaken by the mice with pancreatic cancer was reduced.

This adds important information to our understanding of pancreatic cancer, especially since not all cancers invade peripheral nerves as pancreatic tumor cells do, and not all cancers cause the same level of visceral pain, according to Stopczynski.

“A tumor invading a nerve is going to damage that nerve, causing pain. The nerve can also shield the tumor cells from chemotherapeutic drugs, while at the same time serving as a pathway for tumor cells to spread to other organs. Therefore, these interactions could be responsible for different aspects of cancer progression as well as the development of pain,” she said.

This research is funded by the National Institutes of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, and the Shirley Hobbs Martin Memorial Fund.

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Founded in 1907, the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) is the world’s first and largest professional organization dedicated to advancing cancer research and its mission to prevent and cure cancer. AACR’s membership includes 34,000 laboratory, translational and clinical researchers; population scientists; other health care professionals; and cancer advocates residing in more than 90 countries. The AACR marshals the full spectrum of expertise of the cancer community to accelerate progress in the prevention, biology, diagnosis and treatment of cancer by annually convening more than 20 conferences and educational workshops, the largest of which is the AACR Annual Meeting with more than 17,000 attendees. In addition, the AACR publishes seven peer-reviewed scientific journals and a magazine for cancer survivors, patients and their caregivers. The AACR funds meritorious research directly as well as in cooperation with numerous cancer organizations. As the Scientific Partner of Stand Up To Cancer, the AACR provides expert peer review, grants administration and scientific oversight of individual and team science grants in cancer research that have the potential for near-term patient benefit. The AACR actively communicates with legislators and policymakers about the value of cancer research and related biomedical science in saving lives from cancer.  

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