Pancreas cancer
Risk factors for pancreas cancer
Risk factors are things that make it more likely you'll get an illness. Having risk factors for pancreas cancer doesn't mean you'll definitely get the illness.
Many people with these risk factors don't get pancreas cancer. But if you're worried that you may be at risk, your doctor
may be able to suggest ways you can reduce your risk.
There aren't any screening tests that can pick up pancreas cancer at an early stage, like those for breast cancer and cervical
cancer.
You can reduce your risk of getting pancreas cancer by:
1
Source:
Hart AR.
Pancreatic cancer: any prospects for prevention?
Postgraduate Medical Journal. 1999; 75: 521-526.
Hart AR.
Pancreatic cancer: any prospects for prevention?
Postgraduate Medical Journal. 1999; 75: 521-526.
- Eating healthily, with plenty of fruits and vegetables
- Not smoking. To read about treatments that could help you stop smoking, see What treatments work for nicotine addiction?
Source:
National Cancer Institute.
What you need to know about cancer of the pancreas.
September 2002. Available at http://cancer.gov/cancerinfo/wyntk/pancreas (accessed on 17 April 2009).
National Cancer Institute.
What you need to know about cancer of the pancreas.
September 2002. Available at http://cancer.gov/cancerinfo/wyntk/pancreas (accessed on 17 April 2009).
Men are more likely to get pancreas cancer than women.
African-Americans are more likely to get pancreas cancer than Asian-Americans, Hispanics or whites.
3 The cancer is also more common in people of Jewish ancestry.
Source:
Johns Hopkins Medicine.
The Sol Goodman pancreatic cancer research center.
Available at http://pathology.jhu.edu/pancreas/ (accessed on 17 April 2009).
Johns Hopkins Medicine.
The Sol Goodman pancreatic cancer research center.
Available at http://pathology.jhu.edu/pancreas/ (accessed on 17 April 2009).
If you smoke, you're two to three times more likely to get pancreas cancer than someone who doesn't smoke.
2
Source:
National Cancer Institute.
What you need to know about cancer of the pancreas.
September 2002. Available at http://cancer.gov/cancerinfo/wyntk/pancreas (accessed on 17 April 2009).
National Cancer Institute.
What you need to know about cancer of the pancreas.
September 2002. Available at http://cancer.gov/cancerinfo/wyntk/pancreas (accessed on 17 April 2009).
If you drink heavily, you may be more likely to get pancreas cancer.
4 But we can't say for sure.
3
Source:
Working group on diet and cancer.
Nutritional aspects of the development of cancer. (Committee on medical aspects of food and nutrition policy; no. 48.)
Department of Health, London, UK; 1998.
Working group on diet and cancer.
Nutritional aspects of the development of cancer. (Committee on medical aspects of food and nutrition policy; no. 48.)
Department of Health, London, UK; 1998.
Source:
Johns Hopkins Medicine.
The Sol Goodman pancreatic cancer research center.
Available at http://pathology.jhu.edu/pancreas/ (accessed on 17 April 2009).
Johns Hopkins Medicine.
The Sol Goodman pancreatic cancer research center.
Available at http://pathology.jhu.edu/pancreas/ (accessed on 17 April 2009).
If you eat a lot of meat or fatty foods, you may be more likely to get pancreas cancer.
4 The risk may also increase if you don't eat enough fruits and vegetables.
4
Source:
Working group on diet and cancer.
Nutritional aspects of the development of cancer. (Committee on medical aspects of food and nutrition policy; no. 48.)
Department of Health, London, UK; 1998.
Working group on diet and cancer.
Nutritional aspects of the development of cancer. (Committee on medical aspects of food and nutrition policy; no. 48.)
Department of Health, London, UK; 1998.
Source:
Working group on diet and cancer.
Nutritional aspects of the development of cancer. (Committee on medical aspects of food and nutrition policy; no. 48.)
Department of Health, London, UK; 1998.
Working group on diet and cancer.
Nutritional aspects of the development of cancer. (Committee on medical aspects of food and nutrition policy; no. 48.)
Department of Health, London, UK; 1998.
Some researchers have linked drinking a lot of coffee with a higher risk of pancreas cancer, but more recent studies have
not shown this.
5
Source:
Evans DB, Abbruzzese JL, Willett CG.
Cancer of the pancreas.
In: DeVita VT, Hellman S, Rosenberg SA. Cancer: principles and practices in oncology. 6th edition. Lippincott Williams and Wilkins, Philadelphia, U.S.A.; 2001.
Evans DB, Abbruzzese JL, Willett CG.
Cancer of the pancreas.
In: DeVita VT, Hellman S, Rosenberg SA. Cancer: principles and practices in oncology. 6th edition. Lippincott Williams and Wilkins, Philadelphia, U.S.A.; 2001.
Exercise may protect you against pancreas cancer, especially if you are heavier than average.
6
Source:
Ries LA, Kosary CL, Hankey BF, et al.
SEER Cancer Statistics Review 1973-1996.
National Cancer Institute. Bethesda, U.S.A.; 1999.
Ries LA, Kosary CL, Hankey BF, et al.
SEER Cancer Statistics Review 1973-1996.
National Cancer Institute. Bethesda, U.S.A.; 1999.
If you are very overweight (doctors call this being
obese), you have a higher risk of getting this cancer. Obesity is when your Body Mass Index (BMI) is 30 or more.
7 Your BMI tells your doctor whether your weight is healthy. It's worked out according to both your height and weight.
obesity
If your body stores more energy than you need for daily functioning, this can make you overweight. The excess energy is stored in your fat cells. If your weight goes above a certain level, doctors call this obesity. Obesity is considered a medical condition. The excess weight can be a strain on your bones and joints. And if you are obese, you're more likely to get other diseases. Doctors have developed a scale for telling how much excess weight you have. This measure, called the body mass index (BMI), depends on your height.
If your body stores more energy than you need for daily functioning, this can make you overweight. The excess energy is stored in your fat cells. If your weight goes above a certain level, doctors call this obesity. Obesity is considered a medical condition. The excess weight can be a strain on your bones and joints. And if you are obese, you're more likely to get other diseases. Doctors have developed a scale for telling how much excess weight you have. This measure, called the body mass index (BMI), depends on your height.
Source:
Michaud DS, Giovannucci E, Willett WC, et al.
Physical activity, obesity, height, and the risk of pancreatic cancer.
Journal of the American Medical Association. 2001; 286: 921-929.
Michaud DS, Giovannucci E, Willett WC, et al.
Physical activity, obesity, height, and the risk of pancreatic cancer.
Journal of the American Medical Association. 2001; 286: 921-929.
Your doctor will weigh and measure you. These numbers go into a mathematical formula that gives a single number. This is your
BMI. You can work out your own BMI.
Pancreas cancer can run in families. About 1 in 10 people who have pancreas cancer have inherited changes in their
genes that lead to pancreas cancer.
8
genes
Your genes are the parts of your cells that contain instructions for how your body works. Genes are housed on chromosomes, structures that sit in the nucleus at the middle of each of your cells. You have 23 pairs of chromosomes in your normal cells, each of which has thousands of genes. You get one set of chromosomes, and all of the genes that are on them, from each of your parents.
Your genes are the parts of your cells that contain instructions for how your body works. Genes are housed on chromosomes, structures that sit in the nucleus at the middle of each of your cells. You have 23 pairs of chromosomes in your normal cells, each of which has thousands of genes. You get one set of chromosomes, and all of the genes that are on them, from each of your parents.
Source:
Johns Hopkins Pathology.
Is pancreatic cancer hereditary?
Available at http://www.pathology2.jhu.edu/pancreas (accessed on 17 April 2009).
Johns Hopkins Pathology.
Is pancreatic cancer hereditary?
Available at http://www.pathology2.jhu.edu/pancreas (accessed on 17 April 2009).
If your mother, father, sister or brother has (or had) pancreas cancer, you are three times more likely to get pancreas cancer
than someone with no family history of the disease.
2
Source:
National Cancer Institute.
What you need to know about cancer of the pancreas.
September 2002. Available at http://cancer.gov/cancerinfo/wyntk/pancreas (accessed on 17 April 2009).
National Cancer Institute.
What you need to know about cancer of the pancreas.
September 2002. Available at http://cancer.gov/cancerinfo/wyntk/pancreas (accessed on 17 April 2009).
If a close relative has (or had) colon cancer, ovarian cancer, prostate cancer, breast cancer or melanoma, this may also increase your risk of getting pancreas cancer.
If someone in your family has been told they have pancreas cancer (or one of the cancers in the list above), you may be worried
that you or others in your family are at risk.
To learn more, see Pancreas cancer in the family.
People with a rare inherited condition called hereditary pancreatitis have a 40 percent risk of getting pancreas cancer before the age of 70. If you inherit this disease from your father, the
risk is even higher.
8 See below for more information about pancreatitis.
Source:
Johns Hopkins Pathology.
Is pancreatic cancer hereditary?
Available at http://www.pathology2.jhu.edu/pancreas (accessed on 17 April 2009).
Johns Hopkins Pathology.
Is pancreatic cancer hereditary?
Available at http://www.pathology2.jhu.edu/pancreas (accessed on 17 April 2009).
There seems to be a link between diabetes and pancreas cancer. But researchers aren't sure whether having diabetes makes you more likely to get pancreas cancer. Diabetes
means you can't control the level of sugar in your blood. This is usually because of problems with a
hormone called
insulin. Insulin is made by the pancreas and normally helps control sugar levels.
hormones
Hormones are chemicals that are made in certain parts of the body. They travel through the bloodstream and have an effect on other parts of the body. For example, the female sex hormone estrogen is made in a woman's ovaries. Estrogen has many different effects on a woman's body. It makes the breasts grow at puberty and helps control periods. It is also needed to get pregnant.
Hormones are chemicals that are made in certain parts of the body. They travel through the bloodstream and have an effect on other parts of the body. For example, the female sex hormone estrogen is made in a woman's ovaries. Estrogen has many different effects on a woman's body. It makes the breasts grow at puberty and helps control periods. It is also needed to get pregnant.
insulin
Insulin is a hormone that helps your body use glucose, a type of sugar that gives you energy. Insulin keeps your levels of glucose steady. It also helps glucose get into your cells from your blood. People who have diabetes do not have enough insulin or do not react to insulin strongly enough. This leads to too much glucose in their blood.
Insulin is a hormone that helps your body use glucose, a type of sugar that gives you energy. Insulin keeps your levels of glucose steady. It also helps glucose get into your cells from your blood. People who have diabetes do not have enough insulin or do not react to insulin strongly enough. This leads to too much glucose in their blood.
To learn more, see our articles on diabetes.
Pancreatitis is a painful condition in which your pancreas becomes
inflamed and enlarged. This can be due to an infection or another cause. If you have pancreatitis that lasts a long time, you may
be more likely to get pancreas cancer. But we can't say for sure.
inflammation
If your skin or some other part of your body becomes red, swollen, hot or sore, we say it is inflamed. It means that your body is trying to protect you from germs, from something in your body tissues that can hurt you (like a thorn or sliver), or from things that cause allergies (allergens). Inflammation is part of the way the body heals an infection or injury.
If your skin or some other part of your body becomes red, swollen, hot or sore, we say it is inflamed. It means that your body is trying to protect you from germs, from something in your body tissues that can hurt you (like a thorn or sliver), or from things that cause allergies (allergens). Inflammation is part of the way the body heals an infection or injury.
If you've had surgery to treat an ulcer in your stomach, you're slightly more likely to get pancreas cancer.
Sources for the information on this page:
- Hart AR.Pancreatic cancer: any prospects for prevention?Postgraduate Medical Journal. 1999; 75: 521-526.
- National Cancer Institute.What you need to know about cancer of the pancreas.September 2002. Available at http://cancer.gov/cancerinfo/wyntk/pancreas (accessed on 17 April 2009).
- Johns Hopkins Medicine.The Sol Goodman pancreatic cancer research center.Available at http://pathology.jhu.edu/pancreas/ (accessed on 17 April 2009).
- Working group on diet and cancer.Nutritional aspects of the development of cancer. (Committee on medical aspects of food and nutrition policy; no. 48.)Department of Health, London, UK; 1998.
- Evans DB, Abbruzzese JL, Willett CG.Cancer of the pancreas.In: DeVita VT, Hellman S, Rosenberg SA. Cancer: principles and practices in oncology. 6th edition. Lippincott Williams and Wilkins, Philadelphia, U.S.A.; 2001.
- Ries LA, Kosary CL, Hankey BF, et al.SEER Cancer Statistics Review 1973-1996.National Cancer Institute. Bethesda, U.S.A.; 1999.
- Michaud DS, Giovannucci E, Willett WC, et al.Physical activity, obesity, height, and the risk of pancreatic cancer.Journal of the American Medical Association. 2001; 286: 921-929.
- Johns Hopkins Pathology.Is pancreatic cancer hereditary?Available at http://www.pathology2.jhu.edu/pancreas (accessed on 17 April 2009).
This information was last updated on Apr 22, 2009
This information is for educational use only, and is not a substitute for prompt professional medical advice. Readers should always consult a physician or other professional for advice and treatment.
© BMJ Publishing Group Limited 2009. All rights reserved.
© BMJ Publishing Group Limited 2009. All rights reserved.
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Your use of this information is subject to our User Agreement available at www.ConsumerReportsHealth.org.
Source: ConsumerReportsHealth.org Copyright © 2005-2008 Consumers Union of U.S., Inc.
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