Differentiation of chronic pancreatitis from pancreatic cancer: Recent advances in molecular diagnosis

Chronic pancreatitis is an inflammatory disease of the pancreas, characteri zed by a progressive destruction of the exocrine and endocrine pancreas, le ading both to exocrine and endocrine insufficiency, In recent years, our kn owledge of th is disease has improved, an epidemiological link between chro nic pancreatitis and pancreatic cancer has been established, and the molecu lar alterations underlying their pathogenesis have been partly revealed. Ne vertheless, the differentiation of chronic inflammation of the pancreas fro m cancer of the pancreas remains a great challenge. This overview will poin t out the present knowledge of the molecular pathogenesis of chronic pancre atitis and pancreatic cancer and will focus on the role of molecular marker s for differentiating chronic pancreatitis from pancreatic cancer. Copright (C) 2001 S. Karger AG, Basel.