What is Pancreatic Cancer?
Pancreatic cancer occurs when cancer cells form and grow within the pancreas. These tumors are hard to diagnose early, since pancreatic cancer signs and symptoms aren’t obvious. Because of this, the majority of these cancers are diagnosed after the disease has reached an advanced stage, when treatment options are limited.
Risk include:
The lifetime risk of developing the disease is 1.6%. The risk is about the same for men and women and the typical range of age at the time of diagnosis is between 65-74 years old.
About Pancreatic cancer :
The pancreas is an oblong organ located behind the lower part of the stomach, between the stomach and the spine. It produces juices that aid in digestion and makes insulin and other hormones that help the body absorb sugar and control blood sugar.
The majority of cancer of the pancreas start in the exocrine cells that line the ducts of the pancreas. These are called pancreatic adenocarcinomas .
When cancer begins in pancreatic endocrine cells, it’s called a pancreatic neuroendocrine tumor (NET). There are many subtypes of this type of tumor.
This summary is about exocrine pancreatic cancer. Further mention of pancreatic cancer refers only to pancreatic adenocarcinoma, and not pancreatic NETs.
Causes may include :
Anything that increases your chance of developing this disease is a risk factor. Some risk factors can be changed, while others cannot.
Smoking and tobacco use: People who smoke are about twice as likely to develop It.
Obesity: Being very overweight (having an elevated body mass index, or BMI) increases your chance of developing it by 20%.
Family history: Hereditary genetic changes may account for about 10% of cases. Examples of genetic syndromes that can cause exocrine.
pancreatic cancer include: Hereditary breast and ovarian cancer syndrome caused by mutations in the BRCA1 or BRCA2 genes, Lynch syndrome (usually defects in MLH1 or MSH 2 genes), and hereditary pancreatitis due to mutations in PRSSI gene.
Diabetes: People with long-standing history of type 2 diabetes have an increased likelihood of developing it.
Chronic pancreatitis: Long-term inflammation of the pancreas is linked with increased risk, especially in smokers.
Not everyone with the above risk factors gets cancer of the Pancreas. However, if you have risk factors, you should discuss them with your doctor.
What we Offer at ACH:
About 80% of pancreatic cancers are diagnosed after the disease has reached an advanced stage, which makes them hard to treat. Less than 20% of pancreatic cancers are caught when the cancer is still confined to the pancreas or closely surrounding areas.
Though the disease has not spread, these cases are treated with complicated surgical operations that require a high level of experience to perform safely and effectively.
Whether you’re diagnosed with localized or metastatic pancreatic cancer, it’s important to find a team of physicians with the most innovative treatment options and expertise. At ACH, you are the focus of a personalized pancreatic cancer treatment plan that brings together a multidisciplinary team of some of the top pancreatic cancer professionals that use the most advanced techniques.
When the cancer is confined to the pancreas, and sometimes when it has spread only to the nearby areas, it can be removed with surgery. The highest chances for successful treatment occur when the tumor is completely removed, and the surgical techniques required are extremely complex.
Radiation therapy can be a powerful tool in pancreatic cancer treatment. Our radiation oncologists are experts at stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) and dose-escalation, which allow high doses of radiation to be delivered to the tumor without damaging healthy tissue.