Treatment options for advanced pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors: What is on the horizon?

Treatment options for patients with advanced or metastatic pancreatic tumors (pNET) have expanded greatly in recent years. These treatments include resection, ablation or embolization of liver metastases and systemic therapy with everolimus or sunitinib and cytotoxic agents. New investigational approaches include the use of inhibitors of multiple downstream effectors in the PI3K/Akt/mTOR pathway, novel antiangiogenics, somatostatin analogues, new tyrosine kinase inhibitors and peptide receptor radionuclide therapy. The treatment horizon for pNET patients may offer improved duration of tumor control and survival and more effective symptom control.