A Comprehensive Review of the Current and Future Role of the Microbiome in Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma

Nabeel Merali, Tarak Chouari, Kayani Kayani, Charles J. Rayner, José I. Jiménez, Jonathan Krell, Elisa Giovannetti, Izhar Bagwan, Kate Relph, Timothy A. Rockall, Tony Dhillon, Hardev Pandha, Nicola E. Annels, Adam E. Frampton

Research output: Contribution to journalReview articleAcademicpeer-review

12 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is expected to become the second most common cause of cancer death in the USA by 2030, yet progress continues to lag behind that of other cancers, with only 9% of patients surviving beyond 5 years. Long-term survivorship of PDAC and improving survival has, until recently, escaped our understanding. One recent frontier in the cancer field is the microbiome. The microbiome collectively refers to the extensive community of bacteria and fungi that colonise us. It is estimated that there is one to ten prokaryotic cells for each human somatic cell, yet, the significance of this community in health and disease has, until recently, been overlooked. This review examines the role of the microbiome in PDAC and how it may alter survival outcomes. We evaluate the possibility of employing microbiomic signatures as biomarkers of PDAC. Ultimately this review analyses whether the microbiome may be amenable to targeting and consequently altering the natural history of PDAC.
Original languageEnglish
Article number1020
JournalCancers
Volume14
Issue number4
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 1 Feb 2022

Keywords

  • Biomarkers
  • Chemotherapy
  • FMT
  • Immunology
  • Microbiome
  • Mycobiome
  • PDAC
  • Pancreatic cancer
  • Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma

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