There is a small and insignificant organ in our body, the pancreas, which is often neglected because of its “smallness”. However, it is often due to the irregular structure of life and diet that this small “sesquiterpene” is “irritated” and thus is stalked by pancreatic cancer. For example, we are familiar with the famous Hong Kong movie actress Shen Tianxia, and the “Godfather of Apple” – Steve Jobs, who revolutionized the global technology and electronic products, both passed away because of pancreatic cancer. How far away is pancreatic cancer from us? What are the physical signs when it appears? We interviewed Professor Qian Zhuyin, director of the Pancreatic Center of the Second Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, to explore the story behind the death of celebrities by pancreatic cancer. Host: Like other organs in the human body, the pancreas is also prone to tumor growth, and if it is malignant, it is pancreatic cancer. Director Qian: Shanghai, China is a region with a high incidence of pancreatic cancer. From 2009 to 2011, an epidemiological survey was conducted and found that the incidence of pancreatic cancer in men increased by 55%, while the incidence of pancreatic cancer in women increased by 42%. Moderator: Here, I think of some celebrities such as Shen Tianxia and Steve Jobs, they also died of pancreatic cancer, what do they have in common at the time of development? Director Qian: These people are middle-aged and successful people, and pancreatic cancer tends to favor them. According to the epidemiological statistics, it may be related to their lifestyle habits, such as long-term heavy smoking, strong alcohol consumption and chronic diseases, including chronic cholecystitis, duodenal disease, duodenal papillary disease, overweight, family history of tumor, and recurrent pancreatitis, which are all risk signs of pancreatic cancer. Moderator: Like these celebrities we just mentioned, there are no symptoms at the beginning of the disease, is it related to the fact that pancreatic cancer itself is not easy to be detected at the early stage? Director Qian: Yes, this is related to the location of the pancreas and its complex relationship with its neighbors. As I mentioned earlier, the pancreas is located deep in the upper abdomen, behind the stomach and in front of the posterior abdominal wall, at the level of the first two lumbar vertebrae. Once the typical clinical conditions appear, such as pancreatic head cancer, three typical symptoms of jaundice, abdominal pain and wasting will appear, but in most cases it is already too late. Moderator: Director Qian, people generally know about pancreas from diabetes, is it true that patients with diabetes have a higher chance of pancreatic disease? Director Qian: According to the clinical epidemiological findings, the chance of pancreatic cancer in diabetic patients is higher, up to 7 times that of normal people, and it is also found that about 80% of patients who have pancreatic cancer have abnormal glucose tolerance, that is, pre-diabetes, and 40% of them are diabetic. If new diabetes occurs, exclude the patient’s family history, history of obesity, or if there is further deterioration of diabetes, be alert to whether it is a sign of pancreatic cancer.