Pancreatic Cancer

Pancreatic Cancer

The pancreas is said to be an organ that is said to be located behind the stomach. It is responsible for the production of enzymes which are secreted into the intestines that aids the body in the absorption of nutrients such as fats. It also releases hormones such as glucagon and insulin which aids the body in controlling the sugar level of the blood. The hormone and the enzymes are said to be secreted from specialized cells in the pancreas known as islet cells. The islet cells are prone to tumor and once they develop one they are called the islet cells tumor. Many researchers have been conducted to analyze the premise behind the pancreatic cancer but the exact cause of it is unknown (www.medicalnewstoday.com).

Pancreatic Cancer is said to be common in diabetic patients or people who have chronic pancreatitis (long term inflammation of the pancreas) as well as smokers. It has been concluded by the researchers that pancreatic cancer is said to be more common in women rather than men ad with the increase of age the risk of acquiring pancreatic cancer also increases (www.pathology.jhu.edu).

Symptoms

Unlike other forms of cancer, this form of cancer does not have signs or symptoms and it is this characteristic which makes it fatal. This directly means that when the pancreatic cancer is detected it is said to be in advanced stages (O'Reilly & Kelvin, 2010). When it comes to tangible symptoms associated with pancreatic cancer; they are:

Pain in upper part of the abdomen and discomfort in the upper part of the belly.

Vomiting and Nausea

Weight loss and loss of appetite

Jaundice (Yellow tinge in the eyes, mucous membrane and skin turns yellow)

Weakness and Fatigue

Clay Colored Stool and dark yellow urine (Lowy et al, 2008)

Other symptoms which have been detected in the patients of pancreatic cancer are:

Indigestion

Diarrhea

Blood Clots

Back ache

Tests to detect Pancreatic Cancer

Pancreatic biopsy

MRI of the abdomen

Endoscopic ultrasound

ERCP

Abdomens CT scan

The disease has the tendency to impact the following tests

Serum bilirubin

Liver function tests

Complete blood count (CBC)

Treatment

Considering the fact that it is difficult to trace the cancer in the earlier stages and is found when the disease is in its last few stages, it becomes difficult for the doctors to remove the tumors at the time of the surgery. The procedure that is apt when it comes to eradicating pancreatic cancer is pancreaticoduodenectomy which is also said to be known as Whipple procedure. When the tumor has not spread beyond the organ then the doctors tend to recommend chemotherapy along with radiation therapy. On the darker side when the tumor has spread to the other organs (also known as it being metastasized) such as the kidneys or the liver then it is difficult to curb it via chemotherapy. The drug which is said to be effectively used for chemotherapy is gemcitabine but other drugs have been used for this disease as well. When it comes to gemcitabine it has the ability to facilitate 25 percent of the patients.

For some patients whose disease cannot be ...