Pancreatic Cancer: Early Symptoms, Treatments, Recovery, and Life Expectancy

Pancreatic cancer is relatively rare, but generally feared. Indeed, this cancer is often diagnosed at an advanced stage of the disease, with few symptoms early in its progression.
Cancer of the pancreas, a gland located in the abdomen just behind the stomach, primarily affects seniors. According to the French National Society of Gastroenterology, there are 14,000 new cases of pancreatic cancer per year in France, mainly in people over 50. Previously predominantly found in men, it is also increasingly seen in women.

Definition of Pancreatic Cancer

Pancreatic cancer, the third leading cause of cancer death, is on the rise and could rise to second place within 10 to 20 years, according to the same source. Pancreatic cancer originates in the cells of the pancreas, which are of two types:

endocrine cells: these produce insulin and help regulate blood sugar;

Exocrine cells: These secrete digestive enzymes that facilitate digestion.

However, these cells can sometimes multiply abnormally. According to the Lyon University Hospital, there are two types of pancreatic cancer:

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma: This is the most common pancreatic cancer (90 to 95% of cases). It originates from the dysfunction of the exocrine cells of the pancreatic duct;

To Find Out More About The Next Part, Please Head On Over To The Next Page Button.Pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors: This is pancreatic cancer caused by the dysfunction of endocrine cells grouped into islets, called islets of Langerhans. These tumors progress more slowly than exocrine tumors.

Symptoms of Pancreatic Cancer

One of the major problems in the treatment of pancreatic cancer is that it is often asymptomatic in the early stages, meaning the disease is often discovered at a very advanced stage. Furthermore, the symptoms of pancreatic cancer are not very characteristic and can be confused with those of other, more benign conditions, delaying diagnosis. Symptoms include:

loss of appetite and weight loss;

jaundice: if the tumor is located in the head of the pancreas, it blocks the flow of bile from the liver to the intestine because it compresses the common bile duct. The person experiences yellowing of the eyes and skin, light-colored stools, dark urine, and sometimes itching all over the body;

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