Importance of BRCA mutation for the current treatment of pancreatic cancer beyond maintenance

Abstract

In this editorial, we comment on pancreatic cancer (PC), one of the most aggressive and lethal cancers. Only minimal improvements in survival rates have been achieved over recent years. Available chemotherapeutic regimens have little impact, and surgical resection remains the only reliable curative approach. We address current treatment options for these patients, focusing on the usefulness of breast cancer (BRCA) gene mutation as a prognostic biomarker and predictor of response to chemotherapy. Superior survival outcomes have been reported in patients with PC and mutant BRCA gene treated with first-line platinum-based chemotherapy. Therefore, it appears appropriate to include BRCA gene status among clinical criteria used to select the chemotherapy regimen. In addition, maintenance treatment with poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase inhibitors has been found to improve progression-free survival in patients with PC and mutated BRCA whose disease does not progress after first-line platinum-based chemotherapy. This combination has therefore been proposed as the optimal treatment regimen for these patients.