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Science 19 January 1996:
Vol. 271. no. 5247, p. 294
DOI: 10.1126/science.271.5247.294
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Research News

Claire O'Brien

Pancreatic cancer is one of the most dangerous cancers, killing half its victims within 6 weeks and having a 5-year survival rate of only 1%. Within the past few years, researchers have begun getting a handle on what makes this tumor so dangerous. Most of the cancers show loss or inactivation of two major tumor suppressor genes (p53 and p16), and now another major tumor suppressor gene for pancreatic cancer has been identified (see Report on p. 350). The gene, which is called DPC4, may encode a component of the pathway by which transforming growth factor- beta inhibits cell growth. If so, that could help explain how loss of DPC4 contributes to the runaway growth of pancreatic cancers.




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Science. ISSN 0036-8075 (print), 1095-9203 (online)