Dr. Matthew Katz on Borderline Resectable Pancreatic Cancer

Matthew H.G. Katz, MD, assistant professor, Department of Surgical Oncology, Division of Surgery, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, discusses borderline resectable pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC), a newer stage of pancreatic cancer introduced by the NCCN in 2003.

Katz describes patients with borderline resectable PDAC as a group of patients with localized pancreatic cancer who are between those who are eligible for surgery and those who are not.

This group of patients is particularly important, Katz explains, because they have traditionally been added to the unresectable stage. The standard treatment for unresectable pancreatic cancer is palliative care with an average survival of 12-14 months, adds Katz. However, patients with borderline resectable PDAC may undergo neoadjuvant treatment, which makes surgery feasible and improves survival.

Once undergoing neoadjuvant therapy and surgery, the borderline subgroup may experience an overall survival along the same lines as those who have resectable tumors.