Novel findings of KFO5002-researchers: the tumor-stroma determines PDAC subtype identity and impacts subtype-dependent therapy decision making

The first International Conference of the Pancreatic Cancer Research Centers Germany was held in Munich from May 29 to June 1, 2022. Read the report from Laura Urbach and Tamara Isermann here.

The KFO5002 team meets for its second annual retreat in the Alte Mensa Göttingen from Sept. 23rd-25th 2022 to discuss project progress and to define the concept for the consortium's extension.

Almost exactly one year after the KFO5002´s kick-off in September 2020, and after postponing twice due to the CoViD-19 pandemic, the CRU could finally hold its eagerly awaited first scientific retreat.

In the KFO5002 we are dealing with various data types from our different subprojects comprised of multiple departments.

The UMG Molecuar Pankreas Program (MolPAC) is a prospective clinical registry for pancreatic cancer patients jointly established by the Department of Gastroenterology, Gastrointestinal Oncology and Endocrinology, the Institute of Pathology, the Clinic of General-, Visceral- and Pediatric Surgery and the Institute of Human Genetics of the UMG.

In order to foster scientific exchange in the pancreatic cancer research community, the three DFG (Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft)-funded pancreatic cancer research consortia, the CRU/KFO 5002 from Göttingen, CRC/SFB 1321 from Munich and the CRU/KFO325 from Marburg teamed up and jointly organized the 1^st Virtual Göttingen-Munich-Marburg Pancreatic Cancer Meeting.

In CRU 5002 we explore the mechanistic, functional and therapeutic implications of subtype-dependent genome dynamic alterations for pancreatic cancer progression and therapy resistance. Our consortium aims to elucidate molecular mechanisms that determine highly clinically relevant problems and to identify therapeutic strategies that improve pancreatic cancer treatment.

The diagnosis of a malignant disease is always a pivotal incident for the affected person and his or her relatives. Given its extremely dismal prognosis, this is particularly true for the diagnosis of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC). With approximately 17.000 new cases per year in Germany, PDAC is a relatively rare malignant disease.