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EGFR Signaling Pathways in Pancreatic Cancer Pathogenesis

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Pancreatic Cancer

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Abstract:

The Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor (EGFR/ErbB) signaling axis influences the development, maintenance, and disease of tissues throughout the body. Effects have been demonstrated on normal cell proliferation, migration, differentiation, adhesion, and apoptosis in the pancreas as well as the heart, muscle, nervous system and a wide variety of organ epithelia. In addition, alterations in the EGF pathway, including overexpression of ErbBs, mutations in downstream mediators (e.g., Ras), as well as aberrant signaling, are present in the vast majority of pancreatic and other solid tissue tumors. The importance of the ErbB signaling axis to cancer is illustrated by the number of articles and reviews published on this topic to date (>20,000 and >3,000, respectively). In line with the importance of ErbB signaling to cancer, several anti-cancer therapies have been developed targeting various parts of the ErbB signaling axis. Three are currently in use, and more are undergoing intense development and investigation. Presently, the NIH lists 165 clinical studies of ErbB signaling in cancer.

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Acknowledgments

Work in the authors’ laboratories is supported by AHA SDG 06-30137N (to CRS), NIH DK-52913 (to RU) and Mayo Clinic Pancreatic SPORE P50 CA102701 (to RU).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Physiology and Biomedical Engineering, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA

    Caroline R. Sussman

  2. Laboratory of Epigenetics and Chromatin Dynamics, Gastroenterology Research Unit, Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Department of Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA

    Caroline R. Sussman, Gwen Lomberk & Raul Urrutia

  3. Mayo Clinic Cancer Center, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA

    Gwen Lomberk & Raul Urrutia

Authors
  1. Caroline R. Sussman
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  2. Gwen Lomberk
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  3. Raul Urrutia
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Sussman, C.R., Lomberk, G., Urrutia, R. (2010). EGFR Signaling Pathways in Pancreatic Cancer Pathogenesis. In: Pancreatic Cancer. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-387-77498-5_15

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