从微环境视角看胰腺癌治疗:化疗、放疗与 靶向基质干预
Pancreatic Cancer Treatment from the Perspective of the Microenvironment: Chemotherapy, Radiotherapy, and Targeted Stromal Intervention
摘要: 胰腺导管腺癌(PDAC)因高度纤维化的肿瘤微环境(TME)导致“冷肿瘤”特征,形成免疫抑制与药物递送障碍的双重治疗瓶颈。微环境中癌症相关成纤维细胞(CAFs)通过分泌胶原蛋白、Wnt16及趋化因子,构建物理屏障并抑制T细胞浸润,使吉西他滨联合白蛋白紫杉醇(AG方案)的5年总生存率仅38%。靶向基质的Hedgehog通路抑制剂(如vismodegib)单用或联用化疗未能改善生存期(OS 6.9 vs 6.1个月)。近年突破性研究显示,多维度联合策略可突破耐药:立体定向放疗(SABR)联合PD-1抑制剂(帕博利珠单抗)和MEK抑制剂(曲美替尼),使中位PFS提升至8.2个月(对照组5.4个月),疾病进展风险降低40%;派安普利单抗联合阿洛替尼及PAAG方案(nab-紫杉醇/吉西他滨)的中位OS达13.7个月,显著优于传统AG方案(12个月OS率25%)。未来需基于间质亚型分型优化多靶点协同治疗,重塑TME以提升疗效。
Abstract: Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) exhibits a “cold tumor” microenvironment characterized by dense fibrosis and immunosuppression, creating dual barriers to drug delivery and immune infiltration. In the microenvironment, cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) secrete collagen, Wnt16, and chemokines, creating a physical barrier and inhibiting T-cell infiltration. As a result, the 5-year overall survival rate of the gemcitabine combined with nab-paclitaxel (AG regimen) is only 38%. Targeting the stroma via Hedgehog pathway inhibitors (e.g., vismodegib) failed to improve survival (OS: 6.9 vs. 6.1 months) when combined with chemotherapy. Recent breakthroughs highlight multi-modal strategies: SABR combined with PD-1 inhibitor (pembrolizumab) and MEK inhibitor (trametinib) achieved a median PFS of 8.2 months (vs. 5.4 months in control), reducing disease progression risk by 40%. Similarly, anti-PD-1 (penpulimab) plus angiogenesis inhibitor (anlotinib) with PAAG regimen demonstrated a median OS of 13.7 months, significantly outperforming AG (12-month OS: 25%). These results underscore that integrating stromal modulation, vascular normalization, and immune checkpoint blockade can remodel the “cold” TME, enabling effective drug delivery and sustained T-cell activation. Future therapies should prioritize personalized stromal subtyping and optimized multi-target combinations to overcome resistance while ensuring safety, paving the way for durable survival benefits in PDAC.
文章引用:米锦超, 朱洪. 从微环境视角看胰腺癌治疗:化疗、放疗与 靶向基质干预[J]. 临床医学进展, 2026, 16(3): 2775-2783. https://doi.org/10.12677/acm.2026.1631078

1. 引言

胰腺癌是生存率最低的癌症类型之一。2013~2019年全种族人群胰腺癌5年相对生存率仅为13%,对比历史数据可见长期改善幅度极小——1975~1977年生存率仅3%,1995~1997年为4%,40余年间仅提升10个百分点,远低于其他常见癌症(如甲状腺癌99%、前列腺癌97%、黑色素瘤94%) [1]。近十年来,许多国家的胰腺癌发病率和死亡率均呈上升趋势,尤其是在女性和50岁及以上人群中在一些国家,50岁以下和40岁以下人群的胰腺癌发病率也呈上升趋势[2] [3]

除肿瘤本身恶性程度较高,发现时多分期较晚外,PDAC自身复杂的肿瘤微环境为现有的治疗手段带来的巨大阻碍造成了PDAC极低生存率的严峻趋势。其微环境主要由癌症相关成纤维细胞(CAFs)和肿瘤相关巨噬细胞组成。这些细胞群与癌细胞之间复杂的细胞间通讯,促使形成高度免疫抑制性的肿瘤微环境,此外CAFs诱导的纤维增生可直接导致药物灌注减少,从而降低化疗效果[4] [5]

胰腺癌微环境既参与对治疗的原发性耐药,也参与获得性耐药,其影响不仅限于细胞毒性化疗,还涉及靶向治疗和免疫调节治疗[6]。既往治疗经验及研究表明,最初对吉西他滨敏感的胰腺癌往往在治疗数周后就出现耐药性,而由于免疫抑制性肿瘤微环境及其固有的非免疫原性,如抗PD-1的单药靶向治疗在胰腺癌中尚未取得令人满意的临床效果[7] [8]。此外,尽管长期以来放射治疗因其直接细胞毒性作用而常作为许多肿瘤的局部控制手段被纳入综合治疗策略,但在胰腺癌复杂的肿瘤微环境中,易引发代偿性基质增生[9] [10]

当然,尽管胰腺癌的治疗面临多重挑战,近年来针对肿瘤微环境的干预策略及联合治疗正逐步显现突破。例如,通过靶向肿瘤基质中的关键成分,如透明质酸或胶原蛋白,可有效降低间质压力,改善药物递送。此外,抑制CAFs活化或重编程其表型亦成为新方向,如FAK抑制剂与免疫检查点抑制剂联用在早期试验中已展现协同效应。这些结果表明,干预肿瘤微环境并非削弱治疗效力,反而可能突破耐药瓶颈,提升化疗、放疗及免疫治疗的整体响应率。因此对于PDAC复杂肿瘤微环境的探索,是走出PDAC的治疗困境的必经之路。

本文旨在阐述胰腺癌化疗、放疗、靶向机制等治疗手段与胰腺癌复杂的肿瘤微环境的相互作用,以微环境视角综合评估多维度联合治疗的证据与安全性。

2. CAFs各与高度纤维化的促结缔组织增生性基质——“冷肿瘤”微环境的核心特征

2.1. CAFs亚群与促成“冷肿瘤”微环境的形成

PDAC拥有“冷肿瘤”的微环境特性,一大原因既是其致密的纤维基质构建的直接抵御免疫细胞及化疗药物浸润的物理屏障。在其高度纤维化的基质中,癌相关成纤维细胞(CAFs)是造成此结果的重要因素,CAFs由癌细胞从正常成纤维细胞(NFs)重塑而来,构成了胰腺癌基质中的大部分细胞[11]。现有研究显示,CAFs包含多个亚群,包括肌成纤维细胞样CAFs (myCAFs)、炎性CAFs (iCAFs)、抗原呈递CAFs (apCAFs)、衰老相关SenCAFs等,其中myCAFs亚型SenCAFs分泌富含ECM调控因子和TGFβ的SASP,促进纤维化并诱导肿瘤相关巨噬细胞(TAMs)向免疫抑制表型转化,抑制CD8+和CD4+效应T细胞功能;iCAFs高表达IL6等细胞因子,参与炎症调控与免疫抑制;apCAFs可诱导naive CD4+T细胞分化为调节性T细胞(Treg),此外,FAK信号通路维持SenCAF表型稳定性,化疗会富集SenCAFs以削弱治疗应答,各亚群通过调控肿瘤微环境免疫抑制与基质重塑,协同推动PDAC进展与治疗抵抗[12]

在PDAC肿瘤微环境中,CAFs被转化生长因子-β (TGF-β)等细胞因子激活后,激活的CAFs又通过自生分泌的TGF-β反哺自身TGF-β信号通路活性,形成正反馈循环,而其大量分泌的胶原蛋白(如Collagen I)、纤连蛋白(Fibronectin)等ECM成分,又能通过激活CAFs的机械感应信号进一步激活CAFs,最终形成占肿瘤体积超90%的致密纤维化间质直接阻碍药物递送并限制细胞毒性T细胞的浸润[13]-[17]。同时,CAFs通过分泌促血管生成因子(如VEGF)等促进异常血管生成,导致血管结构紊乱、灌注不良,最终与纤维化的基质压迫一起进一步限制治疗药物的渗透与分布[18] [19]。正是在这样多重因素交织反馈的作用下,最终形成了一个对PDAC具有多重保护作用的物理屏障。

另一方面,CAFs在促进肿瘤进展及抑制免疫浸润也有突出作用。CAFs大量分泌Wnt16蛋白,该蛋白通过旁分泌作用激活癌细胞表面的Wnt信号通路,促进癌细胞增殖、抑制凋亡,同时增强癌细胞的侵袭能力[20] [21]。CAFs通过分泌趋化因子(如CCL2、CCL3、CXCL12)招募髓系抑制细胞(MDSCs,如CD11b+、Ly6Cn、ᵉᵍLy6G+粒细胞样髓系细胞)、肿瘤相关巨噬细胞(TAMs,如CD206+M2型TAMs),并分泌TGF-β、IL-6等细胞因子,直接抑制细胞毒性T细胞功能,最终与其所构成的“物理屏障”共同组成了“冷肿瘤”微环境的核心,致使免疫细胞浸润受限、功能受抑[22]-[27]。在免疫抑制与物理屏障的双重保护下,PDAC的治疗显著受限。

2.2. 复杂微环境带来的治疗困境

在高耐药性及免疫抑制的微环境中,胰腺癌对传统化疗与免疫治疗均表现出显著抵抗。吉西他滨联合白蛋白结合型紫杉醇虽为一线方案,但疗效受限于药物递送障碍与免疫排斥。放疗在局部对肿瘤细胞进行杀伤,但却难以诱导免疫记忆形成,无法实现长期肿瘤清除或控制,肿瘤易出现进展或复发[28]-[31]。靶向基质治疗如TGF-β抑制剂或靶向hedgehog通路抑制CAFs等,虽能重塑基质结构,降低间质压力,改善血管灌注,增强化疗渗透与T细胞浸润,但在诸多临床及动物实验来看,其单用或仅联合单药化疗并未显著延长患者生存期[32] [33]。而在影响因素相互交织的复杂微环境中,尝试多维度治疗手段的联用是否会带来长期获益以及安全性可控程度仍有待大量临床研究进行验证。

在对PDAC的治疗中,需突破基质屏障与免疫抑制双重阻滞两大难关。理想状况下,需结合个性化的“间质亚型分型”与“联合治疗”的多模态策略,精准靶向不同亚型CAFs的异质性功能,协同调控基质重塑与抗肿瘤免疫应答,通过整合靶向基质、血管正常化、免疫检查点阻断及癌症疫苗等手段,重塑“冷肿瘤”的微环境特征,实现药物有效递送、T细胞充分浸润与持久免疫激活,从而突破胰腺癌微环境的多重抵抗机制,提升疗效。但是目前对促成PDAC肿瘤微环境的许多动态通路的交织网络仍有诸多盲区难以在理想状态下显著提高疗效,而对潜在靶点的挖掘、现有手段多维度联合治疗的时序及剂量等都需要更多研究的支撑。

3. 传统化疗:吉西他滨联合白蛋白紫杉醇(AG) (重塑微环境的基础干预)

吉西他滨联合白蛋白紫杉醇(AG方案)是目前治疗PDAC的一线方案。其中,吉西他滨是嘧啶类抗代谢药物,其在肿瘤细胞内被代谢为二磷酸核苷(dFdCDP)和三磷酸核苷(dFdCTP)两种活性形式,分别通过竞争性抑制阻止DNA链延长;抑制核糖核苷酸还原酶的活性来阻断DNA合成,导致肿瘤细胞周期阻滞与凋亡。白蛋白紫杉醇则通过将紫杉醇与人血白蛋白合成纳米微粒后进入肿瘤细胞,其可稳定微管结构、抑制微管解聚,使肿瘤细胞停滞于有丝分裂期(G2/M期),阻碍肿瘤细胞分裂增殖。二者联用(AG方案)后分别作用于不同的细胞周期互补式地增强直接抗肿瘤效应。然而,AG方案作为一线新辅助治疗方案将胰腺癌中位总生存期(OS)延长至42个月,但5年OS率仅38% [34]。尽管AG方案在短期内可控制肿瘤进展,但仅依靠单一治疗难以实现长期生存获益。其局限性可能来自致密的肿瘤基质中,药物浸润困难、浸润不均等带来的高耐药性。

此外对于PDAC“冷肿瘤”的微环境,AG方案具有一定的调节作用。一项来自复旦大学的研究显示,AG方案可通过重塑胰腺导管腺癌(PDAC)的免疫微环境(增加CD8+T细胞浸润、促进TLS形成)和诱导代谢重编程(下调糖酵解、上调脂质代谢等)发挥抗肿瘤作用,但同时会激活油酸-CD36轴,导致化疗耐药和T细胞功能抑制[35]。此研究不仅证实了AG方案对肿瘤微环境中的调节作用,也展示了在PDAC微环境中错综复杂的因素影响下,仅依靠AG方案不仅难以把控其正向调节作用,其长期生存获益也难以保证。而且,已有研究显示,在使用AG方案时,紫杉醇(PTX)占据主导地位,其以时间和剂量依赖方式上调RNA结合蛋白QKI,促使ERC1前体mRNA反向剪接生成circERC1。而circERC1一方面通过抑制凋亡,削弱免疫细胞浸润,阻断“炎症杀伤”通路,为肿瘤细胞存活创造条件,另一方面circERC1通过参与细胞外基质(ECM)重塑,构建阻碍药物渗透的物理屏障,降低药物杀伤效果。两条途径分别针对PTX和吉西他滨的抗肿瘤机制形成耐药屏障,且在GEM协同及正反馈作用下,耐药性不断强化,严重影响治疗效果[36]。这个结果不仅证实了AG方案作为新辅助治疗的一线方案,但随着治疗时限的增加,其疗效受到了到显著限制,也从侧面印证,单一治疗手段难以瓦解PDAC高耐药及免疫抑制微环境的形成。

4. 放疗:诱导免疫原性细胞死亡的激活干预

放疗长期以来因其诱导DNA损失的直接细胞毒性作用而作为一种恶性肿瘤的治疗选择。随着近年来研究的深入,放疗也有激发抗肿瘤免疫的能力,其不仅能招募专门将肿瘤抗原交叉呈递给CD8+T细胞的树突状细胞,还能通过诱导基因产生新突变新抗原,而一部分新抗原能激活功能性CD8+T细胞的抗原性[37] [38]。这些研究为放疗与激发抗肿瘤免疫提供了机制解释和转化依据,同时也是对放疗与免疫疗法等其他治疗方式联用提供了理论支持。

目前胰腺癌放疗手段多为立体定向消融(SABR)及不可逆电穿孔,有研究表明,尽管两种方式作用机制不同,但均具有包括增强效应T细胞功能、减少免疫抑制细胞在内的抗肿瘤免疫,且二者在总生存期及无进展生存期二者疗效并未明显差异[39]。然而,有研究指出,放疗带来的免疫刺激收益可能会被髓系细胞的募集和极化所限制甚至抵消[40]。因此在胰腺癌治疗中,除放疗本身的细胞毒性作用外,深入了解其激活抗肿瘤免疫机制并通过与其他疗法联用来最大化利用其效果,是提升胰腺癌总体疗效的关键策略。

近期一项来自牛津大学的研究中,其通过PI3Kγ (调控巨噬细胞表型的关键通路,其抑制剂可重编程TAMs、减少免疫抑制并增加CD8+T细胞浸润)抑制与放疗联合调控肿瘤微环境(TME)中的巨噬细胞功能,显著增强了放疗诱导的抗肿瘤免疫反应。研究显示,放疗 + PI3Kγ抑制可通过MERTK依赖型巨噬细胞胞葬作用,将“免疫耐受型TAMs”转化为“抗原提呈型炎症巨噬细胞”,进而激活CD8+T细胞介导的抗肿瘤免疫,实现胰腺癌控制[41]。类似的一项临床前研究中,其通过在小鼠模型中使用Toll样受体7/8激动剂(R848,直接激活DCs和巨噬细胞,增强抗原呈递能力、高抗肿瘤因子、降低抑制因子等优化TME)联合立体定向体部消融(SABR)治疗后发现,SABR诱导免疫原性细胞死亡(ICD)释放肿瘤抗原作用加上R848激活抗原呈递、重塑TME的协同机制,显著增强局部抗肿瘤效果,并诱导长效全身性免疫应答,有效控制转移[42]。这些发现都显示了放疗联合免疫微环境调控在胰腺癌治疗中的巨大潜力。

5. 靶向基质(Hedgehog通路抑制剂):解除免疫抑制调节干预

上文已经提到,胰腺癌特征是存在大量纤维炎性基质,这将药物递送和CD8+细胞的浸润变得十分困难,是促成胰腺癌“冷肿瘤”特征的主要原因。这些纤维基质主要是由于癌症相关成纤维细胞(CAF)的异常活化并过度分泌细胞外基质成分。CAF的异质化是一个多维度作用的结果,随着对胰腺癌肿瘤微环境的深入探索,对于胰腺癌靶向治疗的理论靶点也越来越多。其中,在近年来的临床前研究显示Hedgehog信号通路(驱动CAF活化的关键机制之一)的配体刺猬蛋白(SHH)和Indian刺猬蛋白(IHH),二者在胰腺导管腺癌(PDAC)中的表达量显著高于正常胰腺,其通过旁分泌传递–亚型选择性激活–表型维持的层级机制将肌成纤维细胞样癌症相关成纤维细胞(myCAF)高效激活[43] [44]。而myCAF的激活意味着强化间质屏障→保护癌细胞→削弱免疫监视的连锁反应启动,促成PDAC向“生长快、耐药性强、免疫逃逸”的恶性表型发展。除了对胰腺癌肿瘤微环境的直接调控外,Hedgehog通路参与了胰腺癌外周神级重塑,有研究证实Hedgehog信号通路通过外泌体circRNA调控胰腺癌神经重塑的分子链介导外周神经重塑(PNR),参与胰腺癌神经侵犯与癌痛发生[45]。除Hedgehog信号通路外,程序性死亡受体-1 (PD-1,表达于活化T细胞、B细胞、NK细胞等免疫细胞表面的免疫检查点)、KRAS突变(RAS-RAF-MEK-ERK信号通路中的关键激酶,该通路是细胞增殖、存活、分化的核心调控通路)等通路中都具有可为胰腺癌靶向治疗理论靶点的影响因素。所以,很多包括靶向Hedgehog通路在内的治疗策略探索研究开展得越来越多,而随着临床前研究的深入及理论靶点的增加,多靶点的联合靶向及联合放化疗的研究开展,或许可以打破胰腺癌“冷肿瘤”环境下的治疗僵局。

在临床前研究中,Hedgehog信号通路抑制剂展现出了良好的治疗前景。对异种抑制肿瘤的小鼠模型进行维莫德吉(vismodegib,Hedgehog通路抑制剂)干预临床前研究中,结果显示,显著降低胰腺癌模型中增殖性CAFs比例,同时减少胶原沉积,提高肿瘤功能性微血管密度,尽管单用该药时对肿瘤进展影响较小,但在与吉西他滨联用中显著抑制了肿瘤生长[46]。另一研究中,研究者使用环巴胺(CPA,一种低剂量时耗竭CAFs的Hedgehog信号通路抑制剂)联合紫杉醇的纳米制剂对小鼠模型进行处理得到了类似的肿瘤微环境重塑结果,同时较单化疗组显著延长了生存期[47]。然而,当vismodegib在临床应用时却表现乏力,一项II期临床试验显示,在不适合接受根治性治疗的PDAC患者中使用吉西他滨联合vismodegib却并未使中位生存期得到有效改善。吉西他滨联合vismodegib (GV)组中位无进展生存期(PFS) 4个月,中位总生存期(OS) 6.9个月相较于吉西他滨联合安慰剂(GP)组中位PFS 2.5个月,中位OS6.1个月无明显获益[48]。除vismodegib外,在一项类似的III期临床研究中,研究者使用伊布替尼(调节免疫效应,抑制促肿瘤缓解生成)联合白蛋白紫杉醇、吉西他滨治疗转移性胰腺导管腺癌(PDAC),观察结果发现联用未改善患者OS,反而显著缩短PFS、降低总缓解率(ORR) [49]。此外,Tuveson团队的研究指出,因Hedgehog信号通路活化的基质虽存在抗血管生成、降低化疗药物递送的作用,却发挥着占主导地位的抑瘤效应,基质耗竭会导致α-SMA阳性成纤维细胞基质大幅减少,引发肿瘤组织学未分化,同时,基质中存在具有抑瘤特性的癌相关成纤维细胞亚型与细胞外基质组分,盲目耗竭会丢失此类宿主先天防御相关成分,诱发免疫抑制微环境,最终加速肿瘤恶性进展并缩短患者生存期[50]。这些研究的受挫都提示了单靶点抑制或仅联合单药化疗可能不足以逆转高度复杂的肿瘤微环境并提高疗效,甚至在单纯将基质耗竭是可能进一步导致肿瘤进展,因此需要对靶向治疗联合放、化疗在PDAC治疗中的安全性加以重视。

目前,已有少量临床研究将多靶点或联合放疗、多药化疗等与传统化疗或单靶点靶向治疗进行对比并得到了积极的治疗获益。有研究将立体定向放射外科(SBRT)联合帕博利珠单抗(PD-1抑制剂,免疫治疗)和曲美替尼(MEK抑制剂)在术后局部复发的PDAC中进行联用的II期临床研究中,其在与SBRT联合吉西他滨的比较中观察到试验组中位PFS为8.2个月,中位OS为14.9个月,对比对照组中位PFS仅5.4个月、中位OS 12.8个月试验组疾病进展风险降低40%死亡风险降低31%,且不良反应可控[51]。另一项类似研究将派安普利单抗(抗PD-1抗体) + 阿洛替尼(血管生成抑制剂)联合nab-紫杉醇/吉西他滨(PAAG方案)治疗转移性胰腺癌,中位无进展生存期(mPFS) 8.8个月(95% CI 8.1~11.6),9个月、12个月PFS率分别为43.7%、30.8%;中位OS (mOS) 13.7个月(95% CI 12.4~未达到),9个月、12个月OS率分别为84.0%、67.1%,较传统AG方案(mPFS5-6个月,12个月OS率约25%~29.5%)在PFS和OS上均显著提升,且治疗安全性有较大可控性[52]。这些积极结果带来一个好消息,即多靶点协同干预及联合免疫治疗可能更有效重塑肿瘤微环境从而提高肿瘤治疗响应。

6. 结论

综上所述,PDAC作为一种在复杂微环境下的难治性恶性肿瘤,其微环境中存在的诸多促成疾病进展、免疫抑制以及化疗耐药的复杂因素相互影响,而治疗瓶颈的突破依赖于对这些因素动态变化的把控以及多维度干预。在安全可控的前提下,通过将传统化疗、靶向治疗、免疫调节及放疗等手段多维联合,协同逆转免疫抑制状态、重塑血管正常化并改善基质通透性等达到更好的治疗结局。

未来有关PDAC多维度治疗研究应聚焦于个体化治疗策略的构建,结合基因组学、肿瘤微环境特征及免疫图谱等多维度信息,筛选潜在获益人群,优化联合治疗的时序与剂量,从而实现精准的联合干预。同时需关注长期生存者的生活质量及治疗相关毒性管理,推动临床前研究向真实临床应用转化,为PDAC患者带来更持久、安全的疗效突破。

NOTES

*通讯作者。

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