Pancreatic cancer is a type of malignant tumor that normally does not present symptoms in advance, which means that its discovery points to an advanced stage situation, reducing the chances of a cure.
Symptoms
Symptoms may be: Fever; Unjustified weight loss; Jaundice, caused by obstruction of the common bile duct, accompanied by itching all over the body. The color yellow affects not only the skin, but also the eyes and other tissues.
This type of cancer often causes pain. It is generally of medium intensity and located in the upper abdominal region with radiation to the back.
When pancreatic cancer is detected through its symptoms, these are generally related to the involvement of other structures such as the liver and other tissues of the digestive system.
Is pancreatic cancer curable?
Pancreatic cancer is curable, but early detection is difficult due to the location of this organ.
When adenocarcinoma of the pancreas is suspected, the most effective tests to confirm the diagnosis are computed tomography (CT) and endoscopic retrograde pancreatography, which reveal the structure of the pancreatic duct, in addition to a biopsy of the pancreas.
Treatment
Treatment for pancreatic cancer involves radiation and chemotherapy.
Some cases benefit from removing the diseased part of the pancreas through surgery. The treatment is long and new complications may arise, such as metastases to other areas of the body.
