Experimental study on multidisciplinary treatment of pancreatic cancer

We investigated the antitumor effects of intratumoral (IT) injection of mitomycin-C (MMC), 5-fluorouracil (5FU), adriamycin (ADR), cisplatin (CDDP), streptozotocin (STZ), and interleukin-2 (IL-2) on well-differentiated pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (WD PaCa), a solid tumor model in the Syrian golden hamster. The growth of established palpable WD PaCa was not suppressed by intraperitoneal (IP) injection of these anticancer agents, whereas IT injection of MMC (1.0 mg/kg or more), 5FU (12.5 mg/kg or more), and CDDP (2.5 mg/kg or more) caused significant and marked suppression. The growth of established palpable WD PaCa was transiently suppressed by 50 Gy of local irradiation. The antitumor effect of irradiation was not enhanced by it injection of MMC before irradiation, whereas it was significantly enhanced by it injection after irradiation. Intraperitoneal injection of IL-2 (5 or 10 micrograms/d, 18 d) slightly suppressed the growth of established palpable tumors, but it injection of IL-2 caused significant and marked suppression, eliminating the tumor in 10-20% of the animals. Findings in this animal model of pancreatic cancer suggest that it treatment of anticancer agents or IL-2 might become an effective therapy for advanced pancreatic cancer.