p38 MAPK in Pancreatic Cancer: Finding a Protective Needle in the Haystack

Activated p38 MAPK alpha (pp38 alpha) is a good prognostic marker in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma that could be used to personalize therapy. pp38 alpha suppresses JNK-mediated proliferation, both in vitro and in vivo. These findings support the testing of combination therapies that include JNK targeting and/or suppressing negative regulators of pp38 alpha. (C) 2014 AACR.