Pancreatic adenocarcinoma is a type of cancer that develops in your pancreas, the organ that produces chemicals used in digestion and blood sugar control. Around 90 percent of all cases of pancreatic cancer are pancreatic adenocarcinoma, reports the Merck Medical Manual.
Prevalence
More than 42,000 Americans receive a diagnosis of pancreatic adenocarcinoma each year and over 35,000 Americans die from the disease each year, according to the American Cancer Society.
Risk Factors
One of the largest risk factors for pancreatic adenocarcinoma is smoking, and approximately 30 percent of all cases of the disease are traced to the use of cigarettes, reports the University of Southern California. Other risk factors include having diabetes, a high fat diet consisting mainly of meat, chronic inflammation of your pancreas and a family history of the disease.
Symptoms
Jaundice or yellowing of your skin or eyes is usually one of the earliest symptoms of the disease, explains the Merck Medical Manual. Vomiting, abdominal pain and weight loss are additional symptoms.
Treatment
The most common treatments for pancreatic cancer include surgical removal of the tumor and the use of radiation or chemotherapy to destroy the cancerous cells. Doctors may use one treatment or a combination of treatments to fight the disease.
Prognosis
In most cases, doctors do not discover pancreatic adenocarcinoma until the disease has progressed into an advanced stage, making the prognosis very poor. Only 2 percent of patients with this type of cancer survive for five years after diagnosis, reports the Merck Medical Manual.
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