MicroRNA shuttling impacts on cholangiocarcinoma pathogenesis

Cholangiocarcinoma (CCA) is a heterogeneous and very aggressive disease of the bile ducts. CCA is often diagnosed in advanced stages due to the absence of evident clinical manifestation. Since patients affected by CCA are constantly increasing and the conventional chemotherapeutic approaches are not improving long-term survival, novel and more effective strategies are urgently needed. Specific parasites, local inflammation and the exposure to toxic agents are frequently associated to the development of the malignancy in the biliary tree (1). However, their pathogenic role is still object of active investigation.