Frontiers in Bioscience-Landmark (FBL) is published by IMR Press from Volume 26 Issue 5 (2021). Previous articles were published by another publisher on a subscription basis, and they are hosted by IMR Press on imrpress.com as a courtesy and upon agreement with Frontiers in Bioscience.
Pancreatic adenocarcinomas are among the most resistant neoplasms to conventional chemotherapeutics. This has prompted intense investigations of novel non-cytotoxic agents based on new understandings of the molecular pathobiology of human malignancies. This review will focus on the potential uses of three new classes of agents: farnesyl transferase (FTPase) inhibitors, matrix metalloproteinase inhibitors (MMPI's) and antibodies to the HER-2/neu oncogene. When used as single agents, FTPase inhibitors and MMPI's may be cytostatic, helping to delay the growth of these cancers. All three classes of agents may have the greatest benefit when used in conjunction with traditional anticancer modalities. The biology of these agents will reviewed.