this invention pertains generally to the fields of molecular biology and medical diagnosis . more particularly this invention provides novel biomarkers for the detection of pancreatic cancer comprising at least one messenger rna and / or up - regulated peptide in pancreatic cancer . the present invention provides biomarkers capable of discriminating between non - neoplastic pancreatic tissues and ductal adenocarcinoma tissues and can be correlated with a probable diagnosis of pancreatic cancer as well as assessing the efficacy of ongoing therapies for this disease .