What You Should Know About Pancreatic Cancer

Here's something most people don't think about: your pancreas. It's tucked away behind your stomach, quietly doing its job, helping you digest that morning bagel, keeping your blood sugar steady while you power through your day. You probably never give it a second thought. Until something goes wrong.

Pancreatic cancer is one of those diagnoses that catches people off guard, partly because this hardworking organ sits so deep in your belly that problems can brew for months without any obvious signs. By the time symptoms show up, you might brush them off as something else entirely. A little indigestion. Stress. Even getting older.

But your body has ways of telling you when something's not right.

What Your Body Might Be Trying to Tell You

The tricky thing about pancreatic cancer is that it doesn't announce itself with a bang. There's no sudden, dramatic symptom that makes you rush to the ER. Instead, it whispers, and those whispers can sound a lot like other, less serious problems.

You might notice your skin taking on a yellowish tint, or your eyes looking a little jaundiced. Your urine might get darker while your stools turn pale or grayish. That pain in your belly or back that won't quit, even when you take your usual pain reliever? That's worth mentioning to your doctor.

Maybe you've been losing weight without trying, or food just doesn't appeal to you anymore. You eat a few bites and feel stuffed. The nausea comes and goes. You're exhausted, no matter how much you sleep.

And here's an interesting one that surprises a lot of people: new diabetes that pops up out of nowhere, especially if you're over 50 and it's difficult to control.

Now, before you panic, having one of these symptoms doesn't mean you have cancer. Not even close! These signs can point to a dozen different things, most of them treatable and straightforward. Yet if several of these symptoms persist and won't go away, that's when you pick up the phone and call your doctor. Trust your gut when something feels off.

Who's Most at Risk?

Age plays the biggest role here. Most people diagnosed with pancreatic cancer are over 65. If you have close family members who've had it, or if you carry certain gene mutations like BRCA2, your risk goes up. Chronic pancreatitis—long-term inflammation of the pancreas—is another factor.

But here's what you can control: smoking is the single biggest preventable risk factor for pancreatic cancer. If you smoke, quitting matters. It really does. Keeping a healthy weight, going easy on alcohol, and choosing lean proteins over heavily processed meats all help tip the odds in your favor.

What Happens If You're Diagnosed

Getting diagnosed with pancreatic cancer changes everything in an instant. Suddenly, you're learning medical terms you've never heard before and trying to make sense of treatment options.

Your treatment plan depends on where the tumor is, whether it's spread beyond the pancreas, and how you're feeling overall. Here's what that might look like:

Surgery gives you the best shot when cancer is caught early. The Whipple procedure is the most common operation. Our surgeons remove the part of your pancreas with the tumor, along with some nearby tissue. It's major surgery, but for the right candidates, it offers real hope.

Chemotherapy uses powerful medications to attack cancer cells throughout your body. You'll receive it through an IV, and while the side effects can be challenging, these drugs are getting more sophisticated and targeted all the time.

Radiation therapy delivers high-energy beams directly to cancer cells. Often combined with chemotherapy, it can shrink tumors and ease symptoms like pain.

And then there's palliative care. A term that sometimes scares people because they think it means giving up. It doesn't. Not at all. Palliative care is about helping you live as well as possible, managing pain, supporting your digestion, and ensuring you get proper nutrition. It's about quality of life, and it's just as important as any other part of treatment.

You're Not Alone in This

A pancreatic cancer diagnosis brings a tidal wave of emotions, questions, and fear. That's completely normal. This is overwhelming, and you shouldn't have to figure it out on your own.

At New York Cancer & Blood Specialists, we've walked this road with many patients. We know how scary this moment feels. We'll sit down with you, really sit down, take our time, and explain everything. We'll answer every question, even the ones you think might sound silly (they don't).

Together, we'll build a treatment plan that makes sense for your life, your priorities, and your goals because this isn't just about treating cancer. It's about taking care of you.