Human pancreatic tumors grown in mice release tissue factor-positive microvesicles that increase venous clot size.

Essentials Tumor-bearing mice have larger venous clots than controls. Human tissue factor is present in clots in tumor-bearing mice. Inhibition of human tissue factor reduces clot size in tumor-bearing mice. This new mouse model may be useful to study mechanisms of cancer-associated thrombosis. Background Pancreatic cancer patients have a high rate of venous thromboembolism. Human pancreatic tumors and cell lines express high levels of tissue factor (TF), and release TF-positive microvesicles (TF