What are the symptoms of pancreatic cancer?
Pancreatic cancer may cause only vague unexplained symptoms. Pain (usually in the abdomen or back), weight loss, jaundice (yellowing of the skin and/or eyes) with or without itching, loss of appetite, nausea, change in stool, pancreatitis and recent-onset diabetes are symptoms that may indicate pancreatic cancer. If you are experiencing one or more of these symptoms, we urge you to speak to your doctor immediately and reference pancreatic cancer.
What are the symptoms of pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors (pancreatic NETs or PNETs)?
Pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors (PNETs) are rare, accounting for less than 5 percent of all pancreatic tumors. PNETs may cause the pancreas to overproduce hormones. High levels of these hormones in the blood result in symptoms such as weight loss, nausea, vomiting, muscle weakness, and skin rash. Learn more about the symptoms of pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors.
Abdominal Bloating (Ascites)
Ascites is the abnormal accumulation of fluid in the abdomen. This extra fluid causes the belly to become swollen and
distended. Learn more about ascites.
Pain (Usually in the Abdomen or Back)
Pain in the upper abdomen or mid-back may be caused by the tumor pushing against or invading nerves or organs
near the pancreas. Pain can also result if the tumor blocks the digestive tract. Learn more about pancreatic cancer-
related pain.
Digestive Problems
Poor appetite, indigestion, and nausea are common in people with pancreatic cancer. Some or all of these symptoms
may occur when a tumor in the pancreas presses against the stomach or first portion of the small intestine. If this
happens, food may remain in the stomach and cause several digestive difficulties, including nausea and vomiting.
Digestive symptoms can also occur due to blockage of the pancreatic duct through which the pancreatic enzymes
flow or due to changes in pancreatic enzyme production.
Jaundice
Jaundice is a yellowing of the skin and eyes caused by excess bilirubin (a component of bile) in the blood. A tumor in
the head of the pancreas can cause narrowing of the bile duct and block the bile flowing from the gallbladder into the
small intestine. Blockage of the bile duct causes a buildup of bilirubin. People with jaundice may also experience
itchiness of the skin, abnormally dark urine and light or clay-colored stools.
Changes in Stools
Many pancreatic cancer patients experience diarrhea, constipation or both. Diarrhea consisting of loose, watery, oily
or foul-smelling stools can be caused by insufficient amounts of pancreatic enzymes in the intestines. This leads to
malabsorption as undigested food passes quickly through the digestive tract. Constipation is also a common
problem, particularly in patients taking pain medications. These medications slow the passage of food through the
intestines. If the digestive system works too slowly, it can cause stools to become dry, hard and difficult to pass.
Unexplained Weight Loss
Cancer-induced weight loss (also known as cancer cachexia) is a complex problem that affects the way the body uses
calories and protein. Cancer cachexia can cause the body to burn more calories than usual, break down muscle and
decrease appetite. A person may also notice a change in appetite or desire for certain foods.
Blood Clots
Cancer causes changes in the blood that can increase the likelihood of forming clots. Blood clots may go unnoticed
and cause no symptoms. However, they are often associated with swelling, pain and tenderness in the affected area.
Diabetes
Diabetes is a condition in which the body does not make, or properly use, a pancreatic hormone called insulin. Insulin
helps the body use glucose (sugar) efficiently. Research suggests that a sudden onset of type 2 diabetes in people age
50 or older may be an early symptom of pancreatic cancer, especially in those who have a low body mass index (BMI),
experience continuous weight loss or do not have a family history of diabetes. A sudden change in blood sugar levels
in diabetics who previously had well-controlled diabetes may also be a sign of pancreatic cancer. Learn more about
diabetes and pancreatic cancer.
How do I alleviate these symptoms?
If you are experiencing any of these symptoms, it is important to bring them up with your doctor. Those who are diagnosed with pancreatic cancer can talk to their doctor about supportive (palliative) care to help relieve some of these symptoms.
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These symptoms numbers 3,4,6 and 8 my father had experienced. He's been admitted to the hospital last 3rd week of April 2018. He's been admitted for almost 1 week. And Diabetes Type II was diagnosed. After discharged at the hospital, he's taking medicines not 0ne or two but more than 5 medicines he intakes every day, including insulin. So sad he experiencing pain from a different needle (dextrose, a needle for CBC, and needle from insulin). Because when he was young he never went to the hospital to get admitted, just during his illness this year. So he had a phobia. So as time goes by, after 1 week of discharge from the hospital, we noticed he begun to yellowish. We are so worried and we thought there's something wrong in his liver so we never think that it's cancer in his pancreas. In his 2 weeks living in his home, just normal, and everything is okay. He can do singing, he can drive a car, he can carry a pale. So everything is normal even his turn yellow. Until the time has come, my elder siblings decided to get some second checkup for our father to other hospitals. And they repeat all the tests and request for CT scan. And there it is, a round-formed seen in his pancreas. So my mother started to cry and bothering her mind about the serious condition of my father. So my siblings decided to transfer to another hospital where my sibling worked to schedule the operation of my father which by-pass operation as suggested by the doctor. After a long day, it took 5 or 7 hours I think, and the by-pass operations done. We are so sad about his condition. It's a painful captured seeing our loving someone suffered a lot. He went through a lot of tests, fasting, and he even didn't know about his serious condition. And in the corner, we all cried. Nothing to do but cry and cry. Biopsy results were told, he has only 5 months to live. The tumor in his pancreas became bigger, just like a fist-bump of a 3-year-old kid. So I started counting during his first admission in the hospital, that was April. And he will leave us in August. So it happened. He didn't survive that battle. He past away last August 4, 2018. We really asking a miracle from our Almighty God but never happens. I saw my mother how she care and love him. I felt the pain she overcomes. The breathtaking of my father when he died is always taunting in my mind. It really hurts. It's very painful. All happens in our life, is just temporary. We'll never know when we are gone in this world. All of these, we accept the plan of our God. It is His plan. We have nothing to do about it but to accept everything either in a painful way. This is why I'm gone in this site last 2 months ago.
But still, life is going on. God Bless us.
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Source: www.pancan.org
