Knockout a-SMA transgenic mice successfully deplete a-SMA positive PSC in the stroma, which was associated with earlier metastasis, a high inflammatory response, and immunosuppression of pancreatic cancer (Özdemir et al., 2014), while silencing Shh in mice leads to depletion of stromal a-SMA+ cells, revealing a similar course of malignant progression (Rhim et al., 2014). Here, SHH is linked to pancreatic neoplasm.