Summary Cancer-associated inflammation is thought to be a barrier to immune surveillance, particularly in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDA). Gr-1+ CD11b+ cells are a key feature of cancer inflammation in PDA, but remain poorly understood. Using a genetically engineered mouse model of PDA, we show that tumor-derived GM-CSF is necessary and sufficient to drive the development of Gr-1+ CD11b+ cells that suppressed antigen-specific T cells. In vivo, abrogation of tumor-derived GM-CSF inhibited the recruitment of Gr-1+ CD11b+ cells to the tumor microenvironment and blocked tumor development - a finding that was dependent on CD8+ T cells. In humans, PDA tumor cells prominently expressed GM-CSF in vivo. Thus, tumor-derived GM-CSF is an important regulator of inflammation and immune suppression within the tumor microenvironment.

Summary P120ctn interacts with E-cadherin, but no formal proof that p120ctn functions as a bone fide tumor suppressor gene has emerged. We report herein that p120ctn loss leads to tumor development in mice. We have generated a conditional knockout model of p120ctn whereby mice develop pre-neoplastic and neoplastic lesions in the oral cavity, esophagus and squamous forestomach. Tumor derived cells secrete granulocyte macrophage colony stimulating factor (GM-CSF), macrophage colony stimulating factor (M-CSF), monocyte chemotactic protein-1 (MCP-1) and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNFα). The tumors contain significant desmoplasia and immune cell infiltration. Immature myeloid cells comprise a significant percentage of the immune cells present, and likely participate in fostering a favorable tumor microenvironment, including the activation of fibroblasts.