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Groundbreaking research has uncovered the genetic patterns associated with pancreatic cancer, a discovery that could revolutionize early detection and intervention of the deadly disease.
Currently, pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC), the most prevalent form of pancreatic cancer, is often not detected until its advanced stage due to the lack of effective early diagnostic tools.
The team, based in Southampton, Hampshire and supported by the Planet Cancer charity, believe their findings could lead to the development of personalized risk prediction tools.
Such advances will help doctors detect individuals who may benefit from earlier screening and potentially life-saving treatment. Known risk factors for this disease include smoking, diabetes, obesity, and hereditary genetic predisposition.
Dr Georgios Ioannis Veras, Clinical Research Fellow at the University of Southampton, who presented the research at the British Association of Surgical Oncology (BASO) conference this month, said: “Our initial analyzes suggest new genetic patterns that may be relevant to pancreatic cancer risk in the UK population.
“If these findings are replicated in further studies, they could eventually be incorporated into more sophisticated risk prediction tools that combine genetics with age, sex and lifestyle information to help identify people who may benefit from closer monitoring in the future.
“Although much more work needs to be done before this has any impact on individual patients, this is an encouraging direction for future research.”
Scientists used data from the UK Biobank, a database containing genetic information from 500,000 participants, to identify variations in genes associated with PDAC that, when combined with age, sex and lifestyle factors, can help doctors identify individuals at higher risk of contracting the disease.
Dr Zaid Hamadi, from University Hospital Southampton, said: “By expanding our knowledge of genetic risk, we hope to develop more accurate models to make predictions.
“This could then become the foundation of targeted screening programs, especially for those most at risk, and ultimately save lives.”