Desmoplasia in pancreatic cancer. Light micrograph of a section through pancreas tissue, showing desmoplasia associated with pancreatic cancer. Desmoplasia is the abnormal growth of fibrous or connective tissue in response to disease. here, it is in response to the presence of a cancerous tumour. Cancerous cells are red; nuclei are blue; stroma/desmoplasia is cyan; stroma-specific markers are yellow and green, marker overlays are white. Pancreatic cancer is associated with a vast desmoplastic reaction in which the connective tissue around the tumour thickens and scars.