Genetic Research Holds Hope for Pancreatic Cancer Patients

There is hope on the horizon for pancreatic cancer patients. A particularly deadly cancer, patients generally die within two years. New research by Ohio State University scientists has revealed tiny genes that may lead to better ways of treating pancreatic cancer.

Called microRNAs, the genes take on a different look in a cancerous pancreas when compared to a healthy organ. In addition to developing treatment protocols, it is hoped that further research will enable physicians to more accurately predict how long a cancer patient will live.

The findings are preliminary and more study is needed, but treatment "is not decades away, but probably years away," said Dr. Mark Bloomston, the OSU surgeon leading the study.

In the US this year more than 33,000 people will die of pancreatic cancer and 37,00 new cases will be diagnosed, according to the American Cancer Society. Genetic research is on the cutting edge of new approaches to understanding and treating cancer and holds great hope for the future.