This characteristic desmoplastic stroma, made up of an excess of extracellular matrix (ECM) and different cell types, is believed to be orchestrated by the activation of the normally quiescent, homeostatic pancreatic stellate cells (PSCs) to cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) (2), which, in turn, cross-talk with not only cancer cells but also a plethora of other non-transformed cells such as immune cells including M2 macrophages and anti-tumoral CD8+ T cells (3, 4). The gene discussed is CD8A; the disease is cancer.