Patient-derived Organoids Drug Screen in Pancreatic Cancer

Few chemotherapeutic options exist for pancreatic cancer. Moreover, objective criteria are lacking for deciding which regimen is more beneficial for patient presenting with metastases at diagnosis.

This study investigates whether organoid generation from tumour samples of pancreatic cancer is a safe and feasible process for testing of multiple chemotherapy regimens in the laboratory.

By participating to this study, patients will have a part of the tumour tissue retrieved and sent to the laboratory for organoid generation and drug testing. For surgically-resectable tumors, tumoral tissue samples will be collected from the main surgical specimens, before sending it for final pathological examination. In case of suspected metastatic lesion at diagnosis, curative surgery is not indicated. Therefore, we will offer patients to undergo port-a-cath implantation for chemotherapy delivery and concomitant laparoscopic surgical excisional biopsy of suspicious metastatic (either hepatic or peritoneal) lesions.

At this stage of the study, the treatment that the patient will receive after surgery will not be affected by the results of the laboratory testing. In fact, all patients will receive the standard of care treatment based on the most recent oncologic guidelines and on the oncologist's clinical judgement. As part of the study, each patient will be followed for 30 days to assess possible surgical complications related to the surgical biopsy.

This study will help to speed up the implementation of organoid generation in the clinical routine for the choice of the best treatment of patients affected by pancreatic cancer.