Active clinical trials for "Pancreatic Cyst"

Identifying biomarkers of early pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) could facilitate screening for individuals at higher than average risk and expedite the diagnosis in individuals with symptoms and substantially improve an individual's chance of surviving the disease. The investigators propose a longitudinal study of subjects at higher than average risk of PDAC in order to generate clinical data and bank serial blood specimens.

The aims of this study are to determine the natural history of pancreatic cysts and to propose and prospectively validate a diagnostic approach and model for prediction of mucinous versus non-mucinous, and malignant versus non-malignant, pancreatic cysts using a combination of clinical, radiologic, and biomarker characteristics.

The purpose of the Pancreatic Cancer Early Detection (PRECEDE) Consortium is to conduct research on multiple aspects of early detection and prevention of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) by establishing a multisite cohort of individuals with family history of PDAC and/or individuals carrying pathogenic/likely pathogenic germline variants (PGVs) in genes linked to PDAC risk for longitudinal follow up.

Through a comprehensive analysis of the pancreatic cystic fluid analysis, the role of the cystic fluid analysis is confirmed in terms of accurate diagnosis of pancreatic cysts, appropriate prediction of treatment response, and to select proper treatment indication through analytic results.

This research is being done to learn more about pancreatic cysts. The tests that are currently available are imperfect at determining exactly what type of pancreatic cyst a person has, which cysts contain cancer, or what the risk is of developing cancer in the future. The aim of this study is to use a combination of clinical, imaging, cyst fluid analysis, and molecular markers to try to help develop better tools to answer these questions.

The purpose of this study is to develop a minimally invasive test to diagnose pancreatic cancer at early stages of disease and monitor response to treatment.

The main objective of the study is to compare the diagnostic accuracy of intra-cystic fluid DNA molecular analysis to standard diagnostics. The secondary objective of the study is to evaluate the feasibility of intra-cystic fluid DNA molecular analysis.

The study schema is shown in Figure 4. (A) All patients referred to one of the participating academic centers for EUS evaluation of the PCL will be enrolled in the protocol if they satisfy inclusion criteria. Patient consent will be obtained during the clinic visit or prior to their EUS. EUS-guided nCLE imaging is first performed (B) followed by EUS-guided FNA and aspiration of cyst fluid. The cyst fluid is analyzed for CEA and cytology. As per institutional standard of care, the cyst fluid is also sent for molecular analysis. The results of the cyst fluid molecular analysis (B) will be utilized for the most likely diagnosis. Based on institutional multidisciplinary tumor board meetings, surgery is performed as indicated (C). Surgical histopathology serves as "gold standard" for diagnosis. It is anticipated that the majority of patients will undergo surgical resection after their EUS.

Pancreatic cysts are found incidentally on 15-50% of CT and MRIs for all indications and their prevalence is increasing. Many of these cysts may be precursors to pancreatic cancer, and thus pose a substantial risk, however, the vast majority are benign. Increased detection of pancreatic cysts provides an opportunity to diagnose pancreatic malignancy at an early, curable stage yet also increases the potential to over-treat clinically insignificant lesions. This presents a clinical challenge to prevent unnecessary resection of indolent disease, with associated risks of infections, bleeding, diabetes, and costly disability. Unfortunately, there is little information on the epidemiology and natural history of pancreatic cysts to help guide management.

The goal of the IMPACT project is to set up a data sharing infrastructure between expert centers for pancreatic surgery that enables training, testing and validation of computer science tools to improve quality of care for patients with pancreatic cancer.