Clinical Value of Circulating miRNA in Diagnosis, Prognosis, Screening and Monitoring Therapy of Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma - A Review of the Literature

Sep 24, 2026

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Pancreatic cancer remains a major cause of cancer-related mortality, with late diagnosis and an often asymptomatic early course driving poor outcomes. Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma is the predominant histopathological subtype. Endogenous microRNAs are important regulators of posttranscriptional gene expression and support diagnostic and prognostic biomarker development. The review evaluates how circulating microRNAs measured in serum or plasma can support screening, diagnosis, prognostic stratification, and monitoring of therapeutic response in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma.

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CategoryResearch & Report

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Review Clinical Value of Circulating miRNA in Diagnosis, Prognosis, Screening and Monitoring Therapy of Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma—A Review of the Literature Jakub Wnuk 1, *, Joanna Katarzyna Strzelczyk 2, * and Iwona Gisterek 1 Citation: Wnuk, J.; Strzelczyk, J.K.; Gisterek, I. Clinical Value of Circulating miRNA in Diagnosis, Prognosis, Screening and Monitoring Therapy of Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma—A Review of the Literature. Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24, 5113. [https://doi.org/10.3390/](https://doi.org/10.3390/)[ ](https://doi.org/10.3390/)ijms24065113 Academic Editor: Rafael Coveñas Rodr½guez Received: 8 February 2023 Revised: 28 February 2023 Accepted: 4 March 2023 Published: 7 March 2023 Copyright: © 2023 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license ([https://](https://)[ ](https://)[creativecommons.org/licenses/by/](creativecommons.org/licenses/by/)[ ](creativecommons.org/licenses/by/)[4.0/](4.0/)) . 1 Department of Oncology and Radiotherapy, Faculty of Medical Sciences in Zabrze, Medical University of Silesia in Katowice, 35 Ceglana St., 40-515 Katowice, Poland 2 Department of Medical and Molecular Biology, Faculty of Medical Sciences in Zabrze, Medical University of Silesia in Katowice, 19 Jordana St., 41-808 Zabrze, Poland * [Correspondence: jkb.wnuk@gmail.com](Correspondence: jkb.wnuk@gmail.com) (J.W.); [jstrzelczyk@sum.edu.pl](jstrzelczyk@sum.edu.pl) (J.K.S.); Tel.: +48-692-574-630 (J.W. & J.K.S.) Abstract: Pancreatic cancer (PC) is considered to be the seventh most common cause of cancer-related deaths. The number of deaths caused by PC is estimated to increase in the future. An early diagnosis of PC is crucial for improving treatment outcomes. The most common histopathological subtype of PC is pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC). MicroRNAs (miRNAs)—which are endogenous noncoding RNAs involved in the posttranscriptional regulation of multiple gene expression—constitute useful diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers in various neoplasms, including PDAC. Circulating miRNAs detected in a patient's serum or plasma are drawing more and more attention. Hence, this review aims at evaluating the clinical value of circulating miRNA in the screening, diagnosis, prognosis and monitoring of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma therapy. Keywords: circulating miRNA; pancreatic cancer; diagnosis; screening; prognosis; therapy monitoring; pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma 1. Introduction Pancreatic cancer (PC)remains a leading cause of cancer-related deaths. It is estimated that PC was responsible for 466,003 deaths in 2020,which puts it as the seventhleading cause of cancer-related deaths [1] . The incidence of PC has been either stable or slightly increased, with the highest incidence in North America, Europe and Australia/New Zealand [2] . The 5year relative survival rate is 11.5%, and it is largely due to late diagnosis and asymptomatic course at early stages [3,4].The number of deaths caused by PC is predicted to increase to 111,500 by 2025 in the European Union. In that case, PC will become the third leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the EU [5] . The risk factors of PC are tobacco smoking, obesity, diabetes mellitus, a diet rich in processed meat and lack of physical activity. Moreover, several gene mutations contribute to an increased risk of pancreatic cancer (p53, K-ras, p16, PRSS1) [6,7] . The most common histopathological subtype of PC is pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) . It is estimated that it accounts for more than 90% of PC diagnoses. The other types of PC are considered to have an impact on prognosis but have a lesser impact on management decisions [8] . Early diagnosis of PC is crucial for improving treatment outcomes. Ultrasound (US), computed tomography (CT), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and endoscopic ultrason

FAQs

Why is early diagnosis of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma important?

Early diagnosis is crucial to improve treatment outcomes because pancreatic cancer is often diagnosed late and may have an asymptomatic course in early stages.

What role do microRNAs play in cancer biology?

MicroRNAs are endogenous non-coding RNAs involved in posttranscriptional regulation and influence key cancer processes such as initiation, progression, proliferation, metastasis, and chemotherapy resistance.

How can circulating miRNAs be used clinically in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma?

Circulating miRNAs detected in patient serum or plasma may function as minimally invasive biomarkers for screening, diagnosis, prognosis, and monitoring therapy during treatment.

Sep 24, 2026

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