Although neutrophils can contribute to metastasis of PDAC, neutrophil signalling at the tumour border is also associated with poor outcome in human pancreatic cancer (Steele et al, 2016), and so it will, therefore, be interesting to determine whether therapeutic inhibition of UPP1 early in tumour development may reduce progression of local invasive disease in pancreatic cancer. The gene discussed is UPP1; the disease is neoplasm.