Homeostatic Restoration of Desmoplastic Stroma Rather Than Its Ablation Slows Pancreatic Cancer Progression

Sherman MH, Yu RT, Engle DD, et al. Vitamin D receptor-mediated stromal reprogramming suppresses pancreatitis and enhances pancreatic cancer therapy. Cell 2014;159:80–93. In pancreatic cancer, the activation of pancreatic stellate cells (PSCs) is a critical event resulting in the characteristic dense desmoplastic stroma that is important in pancreatic cancer development, progression, and therapy resistance (Gastroenterology 2013;144:1210–1219)....