Pancreatic Cancer: Symptoms, Risk Factors, Prevention

Ian C. Langtree - Writer/Editor for Disabled World (DW)
Published: 2008/12/27 - Updated: 2024/03/15
Publication Type: Informative
Topic: Pancreatic Cancer - Publications List

Page Content: Synopsis - Introduction - Main

Synopsis: Pancreatic cancer is the deadliest of all cancers only five out of a hundred people who suffer from pancreatic cancer will live more than five years. The common symptoms of pancreatic cancer include upper abdominal pain, which spreads to the back and is only alleviated when the person leans forward.

Introduction

Pancreatic cancer is perhaps the deadliest of all types of cancer. Only five out of a hundred people who suffer from pancreatic cancer will survive for more than five years after the cancer has been diagnosed.

Main Item

Your pancreas is an important gland organ in your digestive system. It helps both with both digestion, releasing digestive enzymes, as well as producing important hormones such as insulin, glucagon and somatostatin.

When there is a malignant tumor found on someone's pancreas, they are diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. In the United States, about 33,000 individuals each year are diagnosed with this condition. In Europe, around 60,000 people suffer from from pancreatic cancer each year.

Symptoms

Pancreatic cancer goes undiagnosed for a while in most cases, because the symptoms are hard to identify. The common symptoms of pancreatic cancer include upper abdominal pain, which spreads to the back and is only alleviated when the person leans forward.

Other symptoms include drastic weight-loss, lack of appetite, and suffering from jaundice, but feeling no pain from it.

Risk Factors

There are certain factors which put you at risk for pancreatic cancer. Age, being male, smoking, having a diet high in meat, and being overweight.

African ethnicities are at a higher risk.

Those who work around pesticides and chemicals related to gasoline.

Those who have a family history of diseases associated with the pancreas.

The best way to prevent pancreatic cancer is avoiding the factors which tend to cause it. Among them, cigarette smoking seems to be the biggest trigger for pancreatic cancer.

Prevention

One of the best ways to help prevent pancreatic cancer is to maintain an ideal body weight, eat a healthy diet with lots of fruits and vegetables, and little red meat.

Further studies are suggesting that taking vitamin D can reduce the risk of pancreatic cancer.

Conclusion

In conclusion, pancreatic cancer is a very serious condition, and often hard to identify. It is a must to take advanced preventive measures by exercising, eating a healthy diet, and avoiding negative factors such as cigarette smoking, pesticides and chemicals found in gasoline to decrease the risk of pancreatic cancer.

Typically, a patient diagnosed with pancreatic cancer only survives three to six months after the diagnosis. Pancreatic cancer has the highest fatality rate of all cancers, and in the United States, it is the fourth highest cancer killer.

Author Credentials: Ian was born and grew up in Australia. Since then, he has traveled and lived in numerous locations and currently resides in Montreal, Canada. Ian is the founder, a writer, and editor in chief for Disabled World. Ian believes in the Social Model of Disability, a belief developed by disabled people in the 1970s. The social model changes the focus away from people's impairments and towards removing barriers that disabled people face daily. To learn more about Ian's background, expertise, and achievements, check out his bio.