Open Access

Immune infiltration and stromal heterogeneity in pancreatic cancer: A prognostic model guiding immunotherapy response

  • Authors:
    • Zhilong Zhao
    • Jinlong Zhang
    • Jiayi Zhang
    • Fuyong Liu
    • Bao Wang
    • Yanlin Zhou
    • Xiaomeng Li
    • Rui Li
    • Jinwen Si Ma
    • Hao Wu
    • Yongsheng Xie
    • Xuejiao Li
  • View Affiliations

  • Published online on: July 29, 2025     https://doi.org/10.3892/ol.2025.15211
  • Article Number: 465
  • Copyright: © Zhao et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of Creative Commons Attribution License.

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Abstract

Pancreatic adenocarcinoma (PAAD) is among the most common malignant tumors of the gastrointestinal tract and has a poor prognosis. Research on its pathogenesis and treatment remains insufficient; therefore, the present study aimed to develop a novel model for predicting PAAD prognosis. Transcriptome data for pancreatic cancer were obtained from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) and Gene Expression Omnibus databases (GSE28735), with TCGA data serving as the training set and GSE28735 data as the validation set. Differential expression analysis of GSE28735 data was performed using the limma package, followed by the identification of potential prognostic genes through univariate Cox regression and least absolute shrinkage and selection operator regression. Patients were stratified into high‑ and low‑risk groups based on risk scores, followed by survival analysis, nomogram construction, immune infiltration analysis and mutation analysis. Reverse transcription‑quantitative PCR (RT‑qPCR) experiments were performed for validation. A prognostic prediction model for PAAD was constructed using TCGA patient samples and comprised 12 genes. Kaplan‑Meier analysis indicated that the model effectively distinguished between high‑ and low‑risk groups, which corresponded with poor and favorable prognoses, respectively. Receiver operating characteristic curve analysis demonstrated high predictive accuracy. Additionally, significant differences in immune infiltration and mutation levels were observed between the two risk groups. RT‑qPCR results further demonstrated that the expression of prognostic genes differed significantly between pancreatic cancer (PANC‑1) and normal (HPDE‑6) cell lines. In conclusion, the prognostic model developed in the present study may contribute to an improved understanding of PAAD prognosis and provide new tools for predicting prognosis and immune response in patients with PAAD.
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October-2025
Volume 30 Issue 4

Print ISSN: 1792-1074
Online ISSN:1792-1082

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Spandidos Publications style
Zhao Z, Zhang J, Zhang J, Liu F, Wang B, Zhou Y, Li X, Li R, Ma JS, Wu H, Wu H, et al: Immune infiltration and stromal heterogeneity in pancreatic cancer: A prognostic model guiding immunotherapy response. Oncol Lett 30: 465, 2025.
APA
Zhao, Z., Zhang, J., Zhang, J., Liu, F., Wang, B., Zhou, Y. ... Li, X. (2025). Immune infiltration and stromal heterogeneity in pancreatic cancer: A prognostic model guiding immunotherapy response. Oncology Letters, 30, 465. https://doi.org/10.3892/ol.2025.15211
MLA
Zhao, Z., Zhang, J., Zhang, J., Liu, F., Wang, B., Zhou, Y., Li, X., Li, R., Ma, J. S., Wu, H., Xie, Y., Li, X."Immune infiltration and stromal heterogeneity in pancreatic cancer: A prognostic model guiding immunotherapy response". Oncology Letters 30.4 (2025): 465.
Chicago
Zhao, Z., Zhang, J., Zhang, J., Liu, F., Wang, B., Zhou, Y., Li, X., Li, R., Ma, J. S., Wu, H., Xie, Y., Li, X."Immune infiltration and stromal heterogeneity in pancreatic cancer: A prognostic model guiding immunotherapy response". Oncology Letters 30, no. 4 (2025): 465. https://doi.org/10.3892/ol.2025.15211