Comprehensive treatment of pancreatic cancer in elderly patients

  Radical surgery for pancreatic cancer patients of advanced age above 80 years is less frequently performed in China at present due to factors such as physical weakness, high surgical trauma, high medical costs, and low social acceptance. However, in developed countries in Europe and the United States, due to the high level of medical care, the state bears most of the medical costs, and the doctor-patient relationship is more harmonious, age does not seem to be a barrier to radical surgery, for example, the highest age for pancreaticoduodenectomy in the United States is 92 years old.  If: pancreatic cancer is resectable, the patient is in good health, the family is willing to bear the risk of surgery and postoperative complications, and has better financial capacity (the cost of risky surgery is relatively high), radical pancreatic head cancer surgery can be performed under the premise of perfect preoperative preparation. We will explain the disease to the full family before surgery, so that the family can have a full understanding of the disease and be fully psychologically prepared for the development of the disease.  Due to the current status of pancreatic cancer diagnosis and treatment in China as well as the medical environment, we fully understand the option of giving up radical surgery. For tumors in the head of the pancreas, the best palliative treatment is endoscopic biliary stenting to prevent future biliary obstruction triggering obstructive jaundice causing liver function damage. Tumors in the tail of the pancreatic body usually do not cause biliary obstruction. With further development of the tumor, it will eventually cause duodenal obstruction or caudal pancreatic body jejunal obstruction, which can be supported by endoscopic small intestine endoprosthesis.  Endoscopic treatment is less invasive, faster recovery and less complications, but it only solves the gastrointestinal obstruction and cannot remove the tumor’s invasion of the abdominal plexus at the same time. Therefore, patients in the middle and late stages often suffer from significant and pronounced low back pain, which seriously affects the quality of life. Therefore, without radical surgery, if patients are willing to accept the risk of surgery, it is more ideal to perform open bile duct jejunostomy and gastrojejunostomy to completely solve the future biliary and intestinal obstruction and destroy the pancreatic head and mesenteric root plexus.  Patients who do not want to undergo surgery may also choose to undergo destruction of the abdominal plexus under X-ray or ultrasound endoscopic positioning.  For pancreatic cancer, whether radical or palliative surgery or minimally invasive treatment, chemotherapy should be administered after treatment. There are several regimens with more certain efficacy, but no chemotherapy regimen has a statistically significant difference in efficiency compared to gemcitabine (Kenzyme) monotherapy, so the NCCN (National Comprehensive Cancer Network) 2010 pancreatic cancer guidelines still recommend gemcitabine as the first-line chemotherapy regimen for pancreatic cancer. The usage of gemcitabine is 1000 mg/m2 once a week for 4 weeks. The dose may be reduced as appropriate for elderly patients of advanced age.