There are some people who have chronic “stomach pains”, but stomach examinations never reveal any problems. Instead, they are finally found to have pancreatic cancer. What is going on here? The pancreas is the second largest digestive gland in the body and one of the most important secretory glands in the entire digestive tract, with dual functions of internal and external secretion. The endocrine function of the pancreas is achieved through the secretion of various hormones such as insulin, glucagon and growth inhibitory hormone by the pancreas islets, which are involved in growth regulation and material metabolism of the human body, the most well-known role is to regulate blood sugar. Pancreatic juice is the product of pancreatic exocrine secretion, produced by the pancreatic alveoli and ductal system together. The normal human body secretes 1-2 liters of pancreatic juice daily, which contains a large amount of digestive enzymes and alkaline fluid, and plays a leading role in the digestion of food! Therefore, once there is a problem with the pancreas, it often manifests itself as digestive dysfunction, especially stomach discomfort. The average age of pancreatic cancer is 63 years old, slightly higher in men than in women, and generally very few people under 40 years old have pancreatic cancer, but recent statistics show that there is a significant increase in the number of young pancreatic cancer patients compared to 10 years ago, and the malignancy is higher and the prognosis is worse. Statistics of our surgery show that the 5-year survival rate of patients is around 5%. I. You should be alerted when these symptoms appear! The low rate of early diagnosis of pancreatic cancer seriously affects the prognosis of patients. About 90% of pancreatic cancer is already in advanced stage when it is found. Early detection and early diagnosis of pancreatic cancer is very difficult. This is related to the special location of the pancreas and the fact that there are many organs adjacent to it. Many patients may mistakenly think that it is a disease of the stomach, gallbladder or liver in the early stage, which leads to a missed diagnosis. The appearance of clinical symptoms of pancreatic cancer mainly depends on the location of the tumor in the pancreas. Pancreatic tumors are usually found in the head of pancreas. Abdominal pain, wasting and jaundice are the three most common symptoms of pancreatic head cancer. When typical clinical symptoms appear, it is often near the advanced stage. Specifically, when patients over 40 years old have no obvious cause, the following conditions should be highly valued. 1.Unexplained stuffy and distended discomfort in upper abdomen with wide range, deeper location, vague nature, not easy to describe and accurately locate, related to diet, and with progressive aggravation of symptoms. 2.Persistent abdominal pain and low back pain related to body position. 3.No clear reason for significant weight loss in a short period of time. 4.No history of obesity, no family history, sudden onset of diabetes or sudden aggravation of existing diabetes. The incidence of pancreatic cancer is significantly higher in regions with a high incidence of pancreatic cancer than in other regions, such as those with a preference for pickled and roasted foods, a long-term high-fat and high-animal protein diet. Other factors such as meat and high calorie diet, especially high in carbohydrates, dairy products and marine foods are also relevant. In contrast, people with a diet high in fiber, fruits and fresh vegetables have less pancreatic cancer. Long-term smoking; drinking strong alcohol; history of chronic diseases such as diabetes, chronic pancreatitis, chronic cholecystitis and gallstone disease; long-term exposure to toxic substances are all people at high risk of developing pancreatic cancer. In addition, overweight, family history of tumor, and repeated episodes of pancreatitis are also risk factors for pancreatic cancer. Some researchers believe that men who work in factories related to beta-naphthylamine and benzene have a high risk of pancreatic cancer. Pancreatic cancer and diabetes According to clinical epidemiological studies, there is a significant correlation between pancreatic cancer and diabetes.
The incidence of pancreatic cancer among diabetic patients is significantly higher than that of the general population by up to seven times, while up to 80% of pancreatic cancer patients have a combination of abnormal glucose tolerance and 30%-40% of patients have a combination of diabetes. Patients with new-onset diabetes mellitus of less than 2 years’ duration should be alerted to the possibility that diabetes mellitus may be an early sign of pancreatic cancer development. In recent years, it has been found that diabetes often strikes months before pancreatic cancer is confirmed, a finding that may alert physicians to consider the possibility of early pancreatic cancer in middle-aged patients without a family history of diabetes.