Research Paper On Pancreatic Cancer

"Cancer of the pancreas is a genetic disease that is the fifth most common cause of death in both men and women. Pancreatic cancer affects approximately 28,000 Americans each year, or five out of 100,000 people" (Mayo Clinic, 1998). According to physicians at Johns Hopkins Medical Institute, "pancreatic cancer is the challenge of the twenty-first century." So, where exactly is the pancreas located in our bodies, and what does it do? The pancreas is a gland found behind the stomach that is shaped somewhat like a fish. The pancreas is about six inches long and less than two inches wide, and it extends across the abdomen. The pancreas consists of two separate glands inside the same organ, the exocrine gland and the

The pancreas, located behind the stomach, is a long, thin organ about the length of the hand. It

When spreading through the body there are certain stages the cancer has to go through to expand. Stage 0. There is no spread.The cancer is limited to only one cell in the pancreas. Stage I: The cancer is only limited to the pancreas cell, but has moved at least two centimeters. Not yet visible in screening tests. Stage II: The cancer has grown outside the pancreas and may have spread to the lymph nodes. Stage III: The tumor has spread drastically making it now possible for the tests to detect the tumor,increasing the possibility for it expand into the blood vessels or nerves. Stage IV: The cancer has spread to different organs of the body.("Pancreatic Cancer Treatments by Stage") The first place to attack after spreading would be the stomach, then it would expand to the liver. After the cancer reaches these points, it travels to other places in the body. ("Treating Pancreatic Cancer, Based on Extent of the Cancer").

There are not many defined risk factors known for pancreatic cancer. Some risk factors are “family history of the disease, smoking, age, and diabetes (Mayoclinic).” Ideally, pancreatic cancer cells can be detected early and the patient can be treated surgically, but once the cancer has spread, it is usually incurable. A popular clinical tool used to detect pancreatic cancer “is a tumor marker called sialylated Lewis blood group antigen CA19–9, which can act as a sensitive tumor marker, value diminishes when used to detect small, resectable tumors (Maitra,

Approximately 20% of pancreatic cancer is found to be operable or resectable. The complete resection of the primary lesion is best treatment for patients with localized pancreatic cancer. However the risk of both local and distal recurrence is high in following resection. In early stage pancreatic cancer the complete resection are associated with considerable morbidity in 40–60% of patients and mortality in less than 3% of patients (Sohn et al., 2000; Winter et al., 2006). Moreover, it takes 2–3 months for complete recovery to a normal quality of life. Although the 5-year survival rate of resected pancreatic cancer is approximately 20% and the median overall survival time is 17–27 months (Winter et al., 2006).

The risk factors of pancreatic cancer are habits that most Americans have developed and can not seem to break. There are five major risk factors that people should consider which include the following; Genetics, Diabetes, Smoking, Obesity and Diet (Wax, 2012). Pancreatic cancer runs in five to ten percent of people who have immediate family members who have also had it (Wax, 2012). Different genes have been indicated as risk but no “pancreatic cancer gene” has yet been discovered (Wax, 2012). “People with diabetes develop Pancreatic cancer about twice as often then people without it” (Margolis, 2002, p.497) and the two diseases have been linked (Wax, 2012). Tobacco use is known to increase the risk of pancreatic cancer (Cancer Research UK, 2013). Smoking will double the risk in developing the disease (Wax, 2012). People, who quit smoking, can reduce the risk of pancreatic, lung, mouth, and certain other cancers and diseases. It is a known fact that people with a body mass index ( BMI) higher

Pancreatic Cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths in the United States. Currently there is no cure for this cancer and all available treatments simply prolong the life of the patient. Diagnosing pancreatic cancer rarely occurs at the onset of the disease due to the location of the pancreas in the body. Symptoms such as weight loss and upper abdominal pain do not show up until it is too late. Enzymes produced by tumors known as tumor markers are not reliable until the disease has well progressed. Once you have been diagnosed with Pancreatic Cancer there are different types of treatments that are offered to prolong your life.

Pancreatic Cancer Axia College (2009) Pancreatic cancer is an abnormal, uncontrolled growth of the cells in the pancreas, which is a digestive gland located behind the stomach. The pancreas is both an endocrine and exocrine gland. Cancer of the exocrine pancreas is more common than cancerof the endocrine pancreas. Pancreaticcancer is the fourth leading cause of cancer related deaths among men and women. Pancreatic cancer remains both a challenge to diagnose and even a greater challenge to treat effectively. What is the pancreas? The pancreas is a spongy, tube-shaped organ about six inches long. The pancreas is located in the back of the abdomen, behind the stomach. The head of the pancreas is on the right side of the abdomen. The

Abdominal ultrasound is sometimes used for quick and cheap first examinations. If there is uncertainty about the diagnosis they may do a biopsy by fine needle aspiration. Pancreatic cancer is usually staged after a ct scan is done. The staging system is four stages,from early to advanced and based on TNM classification.TNM stands for Tumor size, spread to lymph nodes,and metastasis. Based on if surgical removal seems possible,the tumors are divided into three broader categories to help decide treatment. Tumors are resectable, borderline resectable or undetectable. If the disease is still in an early stage(stage 1 or 2) surgical resection of the tumor can be performed. Stage 3 tumors can be borderline resectable where surgery can technically still be done or unresectable where its to locally advanced. Stage 1 cancer is only found in the pancreas. Stage 1 is divided into a and b stages based on tumor size. Stage 1a is when the tumor is no bigger than 2 cm. Stage 1b is when the tumor is bigger than 2 cm. The second stage is when the cancer could have spread to nearby tissue and organs, and may have also spread to the lymph nodes near the

Pancreatic Cancer starts in the tissues of the pancreas.To give a vivid image of the pancreas, it is a six-inch spongy shaped organ. Some people say it is shaped

Pancreatic Cancer is currently one of the deadliest cancers in the world. In the United States alone, Pancreatic Cancer was the fourth leading cause of death among males and third in females causing 19,480 and 24,530 deaths respectively (Siegel et al., 2013). It has a five year survival rate of less than three percent in the United States (Siegel et al., 2013). This is mainly due to late diagnosis, surgical difficulties, aggressive metastases and resistance to apoptosis (Li et al., 2014). Surgical intervention has been seen as the most effective form of treatment for pancreatic tumors but due to late detection, surgical options become difficult to pursue. As a result, chemotherapy, and radiotherapy are the main routes of treatment for patients (Li et al., 2014). Unfortunately not only are these routes very low in efficacy (Li et al., 2014), but have incredibly devastating side effects on the body and the overall quality of life of patients (Love et al., 2006).

A 14 year old female with no known history of pancreatitis, alcoholism, diabetes, or biliary disease presented for an abdominal sonogram. Her only symptom was generalized upper abdominal pain with no history of nausea, vomiting, weight loss, or appetite changes. Ultrasound images showed a well circumscribed, round, hypoechoic 14-mm lesion within the head of the pancreas and another lesion in the body. Color Doppler analysis showed no internal or peripheral vascularity associated with the lesions. The main pancreatic duct was dilated, measuring at 4 mm. The ultrasound examination was followed by an MRI which demonstrated a 12 mm mass in the pancreatic body that correlated to the

Pancreatic cancer is when cancer cells form around the the tissue in the pancreas. It is located in your stomach in front of your spine. What the pancreas does for you is it makes the liquid and the hormones that help make your blood sugar normal. For the most part the start of pancreatic cancers start in the exocrine cells. Pancreatic cancer has a poor judgement that might happen in the future. It spreads very fast and not seen in the earlier stages. That is one reason this is one of the major cancers that leads to a lot of people's

Intraductal Papillary Mucinous Neoplasms (IPMN) are tumors that grow within the pancreatic duct that produce thick fluid. This tumor can be classified as main duct IPMN or branch duct IPMN. The classification between main duct IPMN and branch duct IPMN are based on imaging studies as well as histology. In imaging studies some cysts at times display involvement within

The pancreas is a digestive organ that lies below the stomach, it is mostly made up of exocrine and endocrine tissues. The exocrine parts form sacs known as Acini, which connect to ducts with empty into the first part of the intestine (The duodenum). Smaller parts of the exocrine glands are dispersed all throughout the pancreas which are known as islets of Langerhans (Anon, Unknown).