It is typically very difficult discussing the patients who have pancreatic cancer, although
from the surgical point of view if we can do the operation to remove the tumor then
we do give the patients some chance of hope for having a long-term survival more than
five years, for example, even. So it is possible. So we do have patients who are alive five,
six, 10 years after diagnosis of pancreatic cancer only because they were able to have
the operation. So it’s important to discuss with your doctor (you know) what you’re
treatment options are. Unfortunately, once it has spread, it typically implies only chemo
therapy.
Unfortunately the problem is that the majority of the patients diagnosed with pancreatic
cancer already have tumors spread to other organs, which then precludes them from having
any sort of surgery and they go on to seek chemo therapy. And as such then the prognosis
is typically not very good. The only treatment option that can result in any long-term survivorship
is (when you detect it early) is surgery. The surgery can only be performed, or is only
worthwhile to be performed) when the tumor has been confined to the pancreas. That, unfortunately,
does not happen too often. But when it does happen, then for most patients, that’s a
very good option. So surgery can be complicated either with a Whipple operation or removal
of part of the pancreas.
You know it, that the greatest risk factor so far that we know about pancreatic cancer
is smoking and so that it is in that people can do to quit and that would definitely reduce
their chances of pancreatic cancer. We also know that obesity is also another important
factor, as our genetics. Sometimes you can do something about smoking, something about
obesity; genetics is very difficult to anything about. But other than that, we still don’t
know much more regarding the cause of pancreatic cancer. So there are certain life-style changes
that people can do; one (of course) is stop smoking, exercise and eat healthy. Those things
will go a long way, not just with pancreatic cancer but for overall well-being in general.
There’s been a recent estimate in that pancreatic cancer will be increasing greatly in the future
partly because of the aging population, but also because of the difficulty of obesity
in the United States. So we do see, we will probably expect to see an increase in the
number of pancreatic cancers over the next 10 to 20 years.
There are currently several things going under investigation; the problem is that pancreatic
cancer (in general) so typically strikes so few patients, so few people, that screening
the whole population does not become very productive. So there are centers that are
having screenings for people who have multiple family members with pancreatic cancer. Then
there is some worthwhile endeavor in screening, but to be honest, it’s still under investigation
(we don’t know exactly how long). Here at the Med Center though, we are undergoing multiple
areas of research in regards to early screening and early detection of pancreatic cancer (which
we have several research endeavors), one of which we believe will be coming soon to help
screen people with diabetes who may then develop pancreatic cancer.
Due to the unique characteristics of the Medical Center’s practice in pancreatic cancer,
as well as the bench science and basic science component of done at UNMC as well as at the
Eppley cancer center. We have one of the few very coveted procedures/grants from the National
Cancer Institute in Washington D.C. to study pancreatic cancer. So it’s one of a handful
of given to centers around the country and we’re fortunate to have one of those. So
we have a people coming interest in pancreatic cancer and all aspects of that’s been funded
by the government.
There is always ongoing research and there’s been some very important breakthroughs recently
with the cost of pancreatic cancer, which will hopefully translate into some meaningful
treatments in the next several years. So I think there’s still more to do. There are
some early signs of some productive research that’s been going on. So we will make strides
with treating pancreatic cancer.