Pancreatic cancer is one of the most aggressive and deadly cancers, often diagnosed at an advanced stage. With a survival rate that remains extremely low, it's frequently referred to as the "king of cancers." Many patients face a prognosis of less than six months after diagnosis. This is largely due to the difficulty in detecting early-stage pancreatic tumors, as the pancreas lies deep within the abdominal cavity, making conventional imaging techniques ineffective for early identification.
Over the past seven years, researchers have made significant progress in understanding the unique structure of pancreatic cancer. They developed a high-resolution 3D reconstruction method to reveal the internal architecture of these tumors. Their findings uncovered a previously unknown type of microvessel—characterized by large, protruding structures on the surface of endothelial cells, resembling tiny caterpillars. These "hairy" microvessels are believed to play a critical role in nutrient transport, enabling the tumor to thrive despite its dense extracellular matrix and poor vascular network.
Analysis of clinical samples showed that these basal microvilli significantly enhance the ability of blood vessels to transport glucose, providing a vital energy source for cancer cells. The research, published in *The Journal of Pathology*, was led by Dr. Andrew C. Dudley from the University of North Carolina and Dr. Victoria L. Bautch. Their study, titled *"Feeding Cancer’s Sweet Tooth: Specialized Tumor Vasculature Shuttles Glucose in Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma,"* highlights how these microvilli help pancreatic cancer cells meet their high metabolic demands.
Unlike other cells in the body, such as bone or astrocytes, which use processes to obtain nutrients, polar epithelial cells typically do not have functional protrusions on their basal surfaces. This discovery marks the first observation of such structures in vascular endothelium. These protrusions appear only in tumor tissues and may represent a key vulnerability—akin to the "Achilles' heel"—of pancreatic cancer.
Targeting this unique pathway could offer a new approach for delivering drugs directly to cancer cells or disrupting the microvessels that support them. This could potentially become a groundbreaking treatment strategy for pancreatic cancer. The study received strong support from Professor Yu Long and numerous international collaborators.
In addition to this breakthrough, there are also various diagnostic tools available for research purposes, such as ELISA kits, imported reagents, gelatin zymography test kits, and specialized kits for rats and humans. Companies like Nanjing Xinfan Biotechnology Co., Ltd. provide high-quality products for scientific research and clinical testing.
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