Nausea and cancer are often related in that nausea can be a side effect of treatment, but can nausea be a symptom of cancer itself? Is nausea a sign of colon cancer or other cancers? If there is a tumor that lives in the colon, esophagus, stomach, or somewhere else in the bowel, it can … Read more
Pancreatic cancer is seldom detected early enough for curative treatment to be performed – and even if it were, it would still be very difficult to vanquish. The pancreas, a narrow, six-inch-long gland that makes digestive juices and hormones such as insulin, is tucked away deep inside the body behind the stomach, small intestine, liver, … Read more
By Yvette Colón, OD I was diagnosed three years ago with pancreatic cancer, and the one thing I will never forget is when I asked my doctor when I could return to work as a clinical professor in optometry at a local health center. He looked at me and said, “Cancer is now your full-time … Read more
In the fall of 2015, at the age of 44 – young for a person to be diagnosed with pancreatic cancer – Doron Broman was stunned to learn he had a large tumor on his pancreas that had metastasized to the liver. Facing only months to live, Broman would find himself in the right place … Read more
By Yvette Kaplan From her early days growing up in Hungary, Yvette Kaplan has possessed a strong will to survive. Whether it was German occupation during World War II, communism and a daring break for freedom as a teen, or cancer’s devastating impact on her family, she has met each challenge with resilience – including … Read more
Patients with pancreatic cancer often ask Dana-Farber’s Brian Wolpin, MD, MPH, about immunotherapy, the rising star of cancer treatment that’s making impressive gains against many types of malignancies. Immunotherapy drugs, which mobilize the patient’s immune defenses to recognize and attack tumor cells, have worked against lethal cancers such as melanoma and some lung cancers – … Read more
What is the Whipple operation/procedure? Many pancreatic cancer patients are diagnosed after the cancer has spread beyond the pancreas, making surgery a risky treatment option. But for those patients whose cancer is localized, surgery may be used to remove the tumor and prevent further spread. When the tumor is confined to the head or neck of the pancreas, … Read more
Most cases of pancreatic cancer develop for unknown reasons, but about 10 percent occur in families that have a strong history of the disease. That doesn’t mean that if you are a member of such a family you will develop pancreatic cancer, but rather that you are at a higher risk for it. “Research has … Read more
The challenge with pancreatic cancer has always been to catch it early. Because of its subtle, variable symptoms, the disease often isn’t diagnosed until an advanced stage, when it is particularly difficult to treat. Researchers are investigating not only how to detect the disease earlier but also how to better understand its causes and develop … Read more
This post was originally written and published on Vector, Boston Children’s Hospital’s science and clinical innovation blog. At age 13, Jack Andraka lost a family friend to pancreatic cancer. At age 15, he developed a diagnostic test for pancreatic cancer that early findings suggest is highly accurate. In this session from Boston Children’s Hospital’s Global Pediatric … Read more
As November marks Pancreatic Cancer Awareness Month, view the infographic below to learn more about the disease: