EPIC Working Groups - Cancer Working Groups

The Pancreatic Cancer Working Group

Pancreatic cancer is the fifth leading cause of cancer death in Europe for men and women combined. Cases are almost always diagnosed at an advanced stage, and with few treatment options available, the resulting 5-year survival rates are among the lowest (<5%) of any cancer. The best option for treatment is still surgery, but this is available only for <20% of cases with smaller lesions at diagnosis and those that have not spread beyond the pancreas. A history of tobacco smoking, excess central adiposity, and long-standing diabetes are common preventable causes of pancreatic cancer, but these factors are not present in the majority of cases. An important aim of the EPIC Pancreatic Cancer Working Group is therefore to evaluate environmental and genetic risk factors for pancreatic cancer, and to identify pre-diagnostic biomarkers for early detection of this aggressive cancer.

Major activities within the Working Group involve evaluations of the role of dietary and metabolic factors and common genetic and epigenetic events, as well as identification of novel etiological factors that may act independently or be modified by known risk factors for pancreatic cancer. Recent topics in EPIC include evaluation of the role of inflammation and immune response, infection, vitamin D status, plasma fatty acids, and metabolomics approaches. International research collaborations, including genome-wide association studies (PanScan), have resulted in the establishment of large projects involving EPIC investigators, and data pooling projects focused on confirming known or suspected risk factors, including rare exposures (e.g. heavy alcohol consumption), as well as identifying novel genetic factors and their interactions in pancreatic cancer etiology.


Selected publications:

  1. Gentiluomo M et al. Mitochondrial DNA Copy-Number Variation and Pancreatic Cancer Risk in the Prospective EPIC Cohort. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 2020 Mar;29(3):681-686. PMID: 31932413

  2. Obón-Santacana M et al. Consumption of nuts and seeds and pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma risk in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition. Int J Cancer. 2020 Jan 1;146(1):76-84. PMID: 31107546

  3. Naudin S et al. Healthy lifestyle and the risk of pancreatic cancer in the EPIC study. Eur J Epidemiol. 2019 Sep 28. PMID: 31564045

  4. Cirera L et al. Socioeconomic Effect of Education on Pancreatic Cancer Risk in Western Europe: An Update on the EPIC Cohorts Study. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 2019 Jun;28(6):1089-1092. PMID: 31160392

  5. Honda K, Katzke VA et al. CA19-9 and apolipoprotein-A2 isoforms as detection markers for pancreatic cancer: a prospective evaluation. Int J Cancer. 2019 Apr 15;144(8):1877-1887. PMID: 30259989

  6. Park JY et al. Dietary folate intake and pancreatic cancer risk: Results from the European prospective investigation into cancer and nutrition. Int J Cancer. 2019 Apr 1;144(7):1511-1521. PMID: 30178496

  7. Matejcic M et al. Circulating plasma phospholipid fatty acids and risk of pancreatic cancer in a large European cohort. Int J Cancer. 2018 Nov 15;143(10):2437-2448. PMID: 30110135

  8. Naudin S et al. Lifetime and baseline alcohol intakes and risk of pancreatic cancer in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition study. Int J Cancer. 2018 Aug 15;143(4):801-812. PMID: 29524225

  9. van Duijnhoven FJB et al. Circulating concentrations of vitamin D in relation to pancreatic cancer risk in European populations. Int J Cancer. 2018 Mar 15;142(6):1189-1201. PMID: 29114875

  10. Duell EJ et al. Plasma microRNAs as biomarkers of pancreatic cancer risk in a prospective cohort study. Int J Cancer. 2017 Sep 1;141(5):905-915. PMID: 28542740

  11. Huang J et al. Helicobacter pylori infection, chronic corpus atrophic gastritis and pancreatic cancer risk in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) cohort: A nested case-control study. Int J Cancer. 2017 Apr 15;140(8):1727-1735. PMID: 28032715

  12. Molina-Montes E et al. Mediterranean diet and risk of pancreatic cancer in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition cohort. Br J Cancer. 2017 Mar 14;116(6):811-820. PMID: 28170373

  13. Molina-Montes E et al. Flavonoid and lignin intake and pancreatic cancer risk in the European prospective investigation into cancer and nutrition cohort. Int J Cancer. 2016 Oct 1;139(7):1480-92. PMID: 27184434

  14. Navarrete-Muñoz EM et al. Sweet-beverage consumption and risk of pancreatic cancer in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC). Am J Clin Nutr. 2016 Sep;104(3):760-8. PMID: 27510540

  15. Jeurnink SM et l. Plasma carotenoids, vitamin C, retinol and tocopherols levels and pancreatic cancer risk within the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition: a nested case-control study: plasma micronutrients and pancreatic cancer risk. Int J Cancer. 2015 Mar 15;136(6):E665-76. PMID: 25175624

  16. Campa D et al. Leukocyte telomere length in relation to pancreatic cancer risk: a prospective study. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 2014 Nov;23(11):2447-54. PMID: 25103821

  17. Michaud DS et al. Plasma antibodies to oral bacteria and risk of pancreatic cancer in a large European cohort study. Gut 2013 Dec;62(12):1764-70. PMID: 22990306

  18. Bhoo-Pathy N et al. Intake of coffee, decaffeinated coffee, or tea does not affect risk for pancreatic cancer: results from the European Prospective Investigation into Nutrition and Cancer Study. Clin Gastroenterol Hepatol. 2013 Nov;11(11):1486-92. PMID: 23756220

  19. Obón-Santacana M et al. Dietary intake of acrylamide and pancreatic cancer risk in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) cohort. Ann Oncol. 2013 Oct;24(10):2645-51. PMID: 23857962

  20. Duell EJ et al. Menstrual and reproductive factors in women, genetic variation in CYP17A1, and pancreatic cancer risk in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) cohort.Int J Cancer. 2013 May 1;132(9):2164-75. PMID: 23015357

  21. Rohrmann S et al. Meat and fish consumption and risk of pancreatic cancer: results from the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition. Int J Cancer. 2013 Feb 1;132(3):617-24. PMID: 22610753

  22. Elena JW et al. Diabetes and risk of pancreatic cancer: a pooled analysis from the Pancreatic Cancer Cohort Consortium. Cancer Causes Control. 2013 Jan; 24(1)13-25. PMID: 23112111

  23. Molina-Montes E et al. Dietary intake of iron, heme-iron and magnesium and pancreatic cancer risk in the European prospective investigation into cancer and nutrition cohort. Int J Cancer. 2012 Oct 1;131(7):E1134-47. PMID: 22438075

  24. Li D et al. Pathway analysis of genome-wide association study data highlights pancreatic development genes as susceptibility factors for pancreatic cancer. Carcinogenesis 2012 Jul;33(7):1384-90. PMID: 22523087

  25. Grote VA et al. Inflammation marker and risk of pancreatic cancer: a nested case-control study within the EPIC cohort. Br J Cancer. 2012 May 22;106(11):1866-74. PMID: 22617158

  26. Grote VA et l. The association of circulating adiponectin levels with pancreatic cancer risk: a study within the prospective EPIC cohort. Int J Cancer. 2012 May 15;130(10):2428-37. PMID: 21681743

  27. Grote VA et al. The associations of advanced glycation end products and its soluble receptor with pancreatic cancer risk: a case-control study within the prospective EPIC Cohort. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 2012 Apr;21(4):619-28. PMID: 22301828

  28. Grote VA et al. Diabetes mellitus, glycated haemoglobin and C-peptide levels in relation to pancreatic cancer risk: a study within the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) cohort. Diabetologia. 2011 Dec;54(12):3037-46. PMID: 21953276

  29. Michaud DS et al. Alcohol intake and pancreatic cancer: a pooled analysis from the Pancreatic Cancer Cohort Consortium (PanScan). Cancer Causes Control 2010 Aug;21(8):1213-25. PMID: 20373013

  30. Arslan AA et al. Anthropometric measures, body mass index, and pancreatic cancer. A pooled analysis from the Pancreatic Cancer Cohort Consortium (PanScan). Arch Intern Med. 2010 May 10;170(9):791-802. PMID: 20458087

  31. Ammundadottir L et al. Genome-wide association study identifies variants in the ABO locus associated with susceptibility to pancreatic cancer. Nature Genetics. 2009 Sep;41(9)986-90. PMID: 19648918

Contact details/Working Group leader

Verena Katzke, PhD
Division of Cancer Epidemiology
German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ)
Heidelberg, Germany