A recent study supported by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) has identified a blood-based biomarker panel that could enable earlier detection of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC), one of the deadliest forms of cancer.
The research, conducted by teams at the University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine and the Mayo Clinic, was published in Clinical Cancer Research.
Pancreatic cancer is often diagnosed at an advanced stage, leaving surgery—the only curative treatment option—unavailable for most patients. As a result, only about 10% of diagnosed individuals survive beyond five years. Unlike cancers such as breast or colorectal cancer, there is currently no established screening test for the general population. Imaging-based surveillance is typically limited to small groups at very high risk due to family history or inherited syndromes.
Existing blood markers, such as CA19-9, are commonly used to monitor treatment but are unreliable for early detection. CA19-9 levels can be elevated in non-cancerous conditions like pancreatitis or bile duct obstruction, and some individuals do not produce the marker at all due to genetic factors.
To address these limitations, the researchers analyzed banked blood samples from patients with pancreatic cancer and control subjects without the disease. They combined CA19-9 and a previously studied marker, thrombospondin-2 (THBS2), with two newly identified proteins—aminopeptidase N (ANPEP) and polymeric immunoglobulin receptor (PIGR)—that were consistently elevated in patients with early-stage disease.
When integrated into a single four-marker panel, the test demonstrated significantly improved performance. Across all stages of pancreatic cancer, the panel correctly distinguished cancer cases from non-cancer controls nearly 92% of the time, while maintaining a low false-positive rate. For early-stage disease, when tumors are potentially curable, the test identified approximately 88% of cases.
A key advantage of the panel is its ability to differentiate pancreatic cancer from benign pancreatic conditions, such as pancreatitis, which has historically complicated early detection efforts. This could allow clinicians to more accurately determine which patients require immediate imaging or diagnostic procedures, while sparing others from unnecessary interventions.
The study, however, was retrospective, analyzing samples collected at the time of diagnosis. Further research in larger, prediagnostic populations will be needed to establish whether the panel can reliably detect pancreatic cancer before symptoms appear, particularly in high-risk individuals.
If validated in future trials, this low-cost, minimally invasive blood test could revolutionize pancreatic cancer management, shifting the focus from late-stage intervention to earlier, precision-based treatment, potentially improving long-term survival rates for patients.
