Abstract: Objective To investigate the therapeutic effect of thyroid hormone in nude mice bearing human pancreatic cancer
xenograft. Methods A BALB/c nude mouse model bearing pancreatic cancer was established with human pancreatic cancer
cell line Bx-PC3. The mouse models were divided randomly into 5 groups, namely the control group treated with distilled
water, high and low concentrations of thyroid hormone (T3) groups, and high and low concentration of propylthiouracil (PTU)
groups. After intervention for 21 days, the changes in body weight and xenograft tumor volume and weight were measured,
and the serum T3 concentration was detected by ELISA assay. The expression of proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) and
microvessel density (MVD) were detected using immunobistochemistry. Results The body weight of nude mice in T3 groups
was significantly reduced after intervention, while that in PTU groups showed no obvious changes. Compared with PTU
groups and control group, T3 groups showed significantly reduced tumor volume and weight (P<0.05) with also reduced
PCNA expression and MVD, but these effect did not exhibit a dose dependence (P>0.05). Conclusion Thyroid hormone can
inhibit the growth of human pancreatic cancer in nude mice by suppressing the proliferation and angiogenesis of the tumor
cells, suggesting the potential value of thyroid hormone in pancreatic cancer therapy.