Pancreatic Cancer - Silent And Deadly

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Note: Although there are more than 300 natural cures for cancer, it's still a good idea to know what the symptoms are if you develop them. 

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Cancer of the pancreas is an especially serious form of cancer, in part because pancreatic cancer symptoms are hard to notice. Overall, fewer than 4 percent of people with the most common type of pancreatic cancer survive.

Your pancreas is a 6-inch-long organ that lies deep within your abdomen, between your stomach and spine. Your doctor cannot feel small tumors growing in it while examining you. Early in its development, the cancer doesn't cause symptoms. When pancreatic cancer symptoms do show up, you may think some other ailment is causing them.

The only way to control pancreatic cancer is to remove it via surgery before it spreads to other organs. However, most people don't have symptoms before this point. Also, the precise cause of pancreatic cancer remains unknown, although there are some risk factors associated with the illness. Detection, then, becomes key.

Being able to detect pancreatic cancer symptoms plays a big role in your chance of survival. In people with small cancers found only in the pancreas, a successful surgery provides about an 18 to 24 percent chance of surviving five years.
 
Pancreatic Cancer Symptoms

According to Elizabeth Poplin, MD, a cancer specialist at the Cancer Institute of New Jersey in New Brunswick, pancreatic cancer is usually "silent," but it can cause noticeable symptoms.

These include:

• Back pain. Since the pancreas is so close to the spine, a tumor growing on the pancreas can press on nerve roots next to the spine, causing pain in the middle back, Dr. Poplin says. Pain may be steady or on-and-off, according to the American Cancer Society. The pain may show up first in the upper abdomen, radiate straight back, and be made worse by eating. However, most people's back pain is caused by some other problem.

• Jaundice. Sometimes people with pancreatic cancer will first go to the doctor when they develop jaundice, which causes the eyes and skin to turn yellow. That's because the liver creates a brownish substance, called bilirubin, that goes to the small intestine through a tube called the common bile duct. The wider end, or the "head," of the pancreas is next to this duc

If a tumor grows in the head of the pancreas, it may press on the bile duct, preventing the bilirubin from reaching the intestines and causing bilirubin levels to increase in the body. The excess bilirubin leads to the yellowing of the skin as well as itching.

Sometimes jaundice may occur as the result of a small tumor in the pancreas head, thus providing an early warning. However, if the cancer develops elsewhere in the pancreas, it won't cause this symptom as quickly.

• Weight loss. Pancreatic cancer symptoms can include a decreased appetite, a feeling of early fullness, and weight loss when you weren't trying to lose weight.

• Fatigue. You may also have less energy if you have pancreatic cancer.

• Stool changes. The blockages of the common bile duct can cause your feces to look different. According to the ACS, the stool may be pale and greasy, and it may float on the surface of the water in the toilet.

If you and your doctor think you may have pancreatic cancer symptoms, your doctor will check your skin and eyes for jaundice and feel your abdomen for warning signs around your pancreas and nearby organs. You may also have blood and urine tests to measure bilirubin. If your common bile duct is blocked, you'll probably have more bilirubin in your blood and urine.

Remember, as is the case with most cancers, pancreatic cancer has the best prognosis when found in its earliest stages. Talk to your doctor if you notice any new or unusual symptoms. Taking action early could mean the difference between life and death.

By Eric Metcalf, MPH