Executive Summary of the American Radium Society (ARS) Appropriate Use Criteria (AUC) for Adjuvant Therapy for Resected Adenocarcinoma of the Pancreas
Krishan R. Jethwa, Neil B. Newman, J. Eva Selfridge, Christopher J. Anker, Gerard Abood, Dmitriy Akselrod, Joseph Attallah, Christopher L. Hallemeier, Leslie C. Hassett, Zhaohui Jin, Ed Kim, Timothy Kennedy, Percy Lee, Diane C. Ling, Eric D. Miller, Navesh Sharma, William Small, Leila Tchelebi, Suzanne RussoObjectives:
Rates of locoregional recurrence and distant metastases are high following curative-intent resection for patients with localized pancreatic adenocarcinoma. Adjuvant therapies have been investigated with the intent to reduce the risk of recurrence and improve OS. The objective of this study is to update and summarize the current evidence for adjuvant therapy following surgical resection for nonmetastatic PDAC with a focus on high-level evidence and randomized controlled trials is provided.
Methods:
This multispecialty-led committee included gastrointestinal radiation and medical oncology, gastroenterology, radiology, and surgical oncology. Using the population, intervention, comparator, outcome, timing and study design framework, evidence regarding treatment outcomes was assessed using Cochrane and PRISMA methodology. Eligible studies included prospective and retrospective (n≥25) studies published between January 1, 2013 and February 13, 2026, from Ovid MEDLINE, Ovid EMBASE, Ovid Cochrane Database of Systematic Review, and Scopus databases. Study type and quality were assessed. Well-established RAND/UCLA consensus methodology (modified Delphi) was used to rate the appropriateness of the treatment options.
Results:
Of the 74 references used as evidence, 74 are categorized as therapeutic references. Study type and quality for the references were assessed, and included 31 well-designed studies (phase II randomized and phase III), 14 moderately well-designed studies that account for most common biases (matched cohort and phase II studies), 28 studies with design limitations (retrospective reviews), and 1 reference meta-analysis.
Conclusions:
This systematic review and guidelines provide up-to-date recommendations focusing on recent advancements for adjuvant treatment of resected PDAC using modern systemic therapy regimens and selective use of radiotherapy using modern techniques.