Pancreatic Cancer The Slow Starter
Pancreatic Cancer often doesn’t show any obvious signs at the start, which makes it difficult for that early diagnosis crucial to many cancer treatments.
The symptoms are often as below, but not limited to those only. If you feel that you have any of these and they are persistent after a few weeks, visit your Doctor and ask to get tested.
- Belly ache that seems to affect your back.
- Weight loss when you are not expecting it or dieting.
- A Change in your bowel movements.
- Indigestion or Irritable Bowel Syndrome.
- Yellow Jaundice. Itchy skin and yellowy eyes: For which you should always seek immediate medical attention.
Like all cancers the earlier that you can get treatment, the better and that is why it is so important for you to get tested. Don’t feel like you are bothering your doctor because diagnosis of this disease is often difficult.
When you try to explain any symptoms to your doctor, make sure that you mention any tiny differences, especially in your tummy area. Check your poo regularly for any changes. If your poo is pale in colour, oily and floating or you have diarrhoea and even constipation get checked out, especially if it combines with belly and back ache. Explain it like that when you talk to your doctor.
Because of the way this disease starts slowly, if you feel uncertain of any symptoms, it may help if you make notes daily. Keep a little personal diary of these symptoms.
Because Pancreatic Cancer is often not seen or picked up by doctors regularly before a hospital tests you, it is wise to be persistent, ask for a CT Scan if you feel it might be necessary.
Because it is one of those rarer diseases Pancreatic Cancer has often been diagnosed correctly much later due to its similarity to other more common diseases such as Gall Stones, IBS (Irritable Bowel Syndrome), Pancreatitis, and Hepatitis, where your Liver is inflamed. Maybe your doctor has diagnosed one of those more common diseases and the treatment hasn’t seemed to work, if that is the case then go back to your doctor, and keep on at him.
There are other less obvious symptoms that can lead to a diagnosis. Shivering and being feverish, difficulty in swallowing food, or general “not-quite-right” feelings.
Recently, by coincidence, and as I was researching for this article I met 2 men who both suffered an unexplained sudden weight loss. One of them, a very large guy of 260 Pounds dropped less than 200 Pounds in only a couple of weeks. He was concerned enough to seek advice and was diagnosed very quickly and hopefully in time for his treatment to be successful. The other was picked up late and has had many doses of chemotherapy and is touch and go whether he will survive this year.
New Research Is Delivering
The Pancreatic Cancer Research Foundation is now enthusiastically predicting that using artificial intelligence data is showing promising results for predicting those patients that might develop pancreatic cancer earlier, even some 20 months ahead.
Research Scientists are making advances, but it is slow and painstaking. In addition to using AI Data, they are investigating new Immune Cell Therapies, Different Chemotherapy Drugs and other mind-boggling technologies.
https://www.pcrf.org.uk/pancreatic-cancer-research/developing-new-treatments/
There is some great information about the tests, symptoms, treatments etc. about this disease also on https://www.pancreaticcancer.org.uk/
