Therapeutic perspectives on pancreatic cancer

Pancreatic cancer has a poor prognosis, with only 10% survival one year following diagnosis. Despite significant advances in conventional therapies (chemotherapy and radiotherapy), little improvement in patient survival has occurred in the last decade. Therefore, there is a critical need for novel and effective therapeutic approaches for this cancer. This article reviews current concepts in the pathogenesis and treatment of pancreatic cancer, the latter including tumor resection approaches and the current standard of care. We further describe recent advances in new and combination therapies, which result only in modest increases in survival, and discuss challenges in drug delivery and limiting toxicity.