Cancer of the Pancreas: An Overview

Pancreatic cancer accounts for two percent of all cancer cases in the United States: every year 29,000 Americans are diagnosed with the disease. Despite its low occurrence rate, it is the fifth leading cause of cancer deaths in the US.

 

A number of reasons account for the disease's high mortality rate. The gland is well protected by surrounding organs, making it impossible to palpate. Symptoms are vague, and can easily be mistaken for other diseases. In addition, symptoms generally only develop after the disease has reached an advanced state.

The most common type of tumor to develop in the pancreas is an adenocarcinoma. An adenocarcinoma develops from the lining of a glandular organ. Most pancreatic adenocarcinomas develop in the exocrine cells, which produce digestive juices.

Anyone can develop cancer of the pancreas, but certain factors increase an individual's risk levels. Risk factors include:

As noted above, symptoms are vague, and can easily be mistaken for a number of other diseases. Symptoms include:

If a tumor is suspected, diagnostic imaging tools and a biopsy will be required to attain a firm diagnosis.

Treatment options depend on how early the tumor is detected. If the disease has metastasized (spread to other organs), pain management and palliative care using chemotherapy and radiation therapy are the only real options. If however, the tumor is detected at an early stage, a number of surgical options exist. A pancreatectomy, which removes either the entire gland or a portion of it, may be performed.

A surgical option known as the Whipple procedure may also be used. The Whipple procedure removes the broadest portion of the pancreas (the head), the gall bladder, a portion of both the stomach and the small intestine, and the bile duct. Enough of the pancreas remains to produce necessary digestive juices and insulin.