Editorial
Copyright ©2012 Baishideng Publishing Group Co., Limited. All rights reserved.
World J Gastroenterol. Sep 7, 2012; 18(33): 4457-4465
Published online Sep 7, 2012. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v18.i33.4457
Role of taxanes in pancreatic cancer
Carmen Belli, Stefano Cereda, Michele Reni
Carmen Belli, Stefano Cereda, Michele Reni, Department of Oncology, San Raffaele Scientific Institute, 20132 Milan, Italy
Author contributions: Reni M conceived the paper and critically reviewed the data and the final version; Cereda S contributed to the analysis and interpretation of data; Belli C drafted the article and revised it critically for important intellectual content; and all authors approved the final version.
Correspondence to: Michele Reni, MD, Department of Oncology, San Raffaele Scientific Institute, via Olgettina 60, 20132 Milan, Italy. reni.michele@hsr.it
Telephone: +39-2-26437644 Fax: +39-2-26437625
Received: January 9, 2012
Revised: April 9, 2012
Accepted: April 12, 2012
Published online: September 7, 2012
Abstract

Pancreatic cancer is one of the most deadly cancers and is characterized by a poor prognosis. Single agent gemcitabine, despite its limited activity and modest impact on disease outcome, is considered as the standard therapy in pancreatic cancer. Most of the combination regimens used in the treatment of this disease, also including the targeted agents, did not improve the outcome of patients. Also, taxanes have been tested as single agent and in combination chemotherapy, both in first line and as salvage chemotherapy, as another possible option for treating pancreatic cancer. The inclusion of taxanes in combination with gemcitabine as upfront therapy obtained promising results. Accordingly, taxanes, and above all, new generation taxanes, appear to be suitable candidates for further testing to assess their role against pancreatic cancer in various clinical settings.

Keywords: Pancreatic cancer; Advanced disease; Metastatic disease; Chemotherapy; Taxanes; Drug combinations; Radiotherapy; ABI-007