Commentary on “Intercellular TIMP-1-CD63 signaling directs the evolution of immune escape and metastasis in KRAS-mutated pancreatic cancer cells”

We recently carefully read the article titled “Intercellular TIMP-1-CD63 signaling directs the evolution of immune escape and metastasis in KRAS-mutated pancreatic cancer cells” published by Chu-An Wang et al. in Molecular Cancer. While this study provides valuable insights into tumor-immune crosstalk, we raise two points for clarification to enhance its precision. First, the manuscript classifies T2N0M0 samples as stage II pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC), which conflicts with the eighth edition of the AJCC Cancer Staging Manual that designates T2N0M0 as stage IB. Second, the authors used pancreatic stellate cells (PSCs) as a surrogate for fibroblasts to model stromal effects, but accumulating evidence indicates that PSCs and fibroblasts are not equivalent. To address this, we integrated single-cell, spatial, and bulk transcriptomic data from multiple cohorts. Our analyses revealed substantial differences between fibroblasts and stellate cells in abundance (fibroblasts enriched in primary pancreatic cancer tumor tissues), prognostic relevance (high fibroblasts associated with poorer survival, high stellate cells with better prognosis), spatial distribution (fibroblasts localized around malignant tumor cells), and intercellular communication (fibroblasts as stronger signal senders to malignant tumor cells). These findings confirm that PSCs cannot accurately represent fibroblasts in PDAC. We emphasize that clarifying these points will not undermine the study’s significance but will strengthen its rigor and comparability. Wang et al.’s work remains a valuable contribution to understanding PDAC progression, and we anticipate these clarifications will further advance stromal-immune crosstalk research in PDAC.