Activation of alpha-smooth muscle actin-positive myofibroblast-like cells after chemotherapy with gemcitabine in a rat orthotopic pancreatic cancer model

Background To investigate the behavior of activated pancreatic stellate cells (PSCs), which express alpha-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA), and pancreatic cancer cells in vivo, we examined the expression of α-SMA-positive myofibroblast-like cells in pancreatic cancer tissue after treatment with gemcitabine (GEM) using a Lewis orthotopic rat pancreatic cancer model.