Pancreas cancer is more common in male patients.

Risk factors

• Smoking
• Diabetes
• Chronic cirrhosis (condition where liver is failing to function)
• Obesity

Clinical Features

• Abdomen pain
• Weight loss
• Jaundice
• Blood vomiting and blood in stools

Evaluation

• Serum CEA,serum Ca19.9
• CT scan of abdomen,thorax
• Endoscopic ultrasound in select case with FNAC
• Whole body Pet CT scan may be done

Stage of disease

• Very early stage – cancer less than 2 cm
• Early stage – cancer more than 2 cm but limited to pancreas
• Advanced stage – cancer involving adjacent organs, major blood vessels and lymph nodes
• Very advanced stage – distant spread to liver, lungs etc

Treatmnet

• In very early and early stages, surgery is the treatment of choice. Whipple`s or pancreaticoduodenectomy is the procedure done. It requires considerable expertise.
• In advanced stages a combination of chemoradiotherapy and surgery is offerred.
• In very advanced stages only chemotherapy is given. Palliative surgery or stenting is done to relieve jaundice in some patients.