Pancreatic Cancer Center

According to the National Cancer Institute, about 26,000 people in the United States are diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, or carcinoma of the pancreas, each year. Pancreatic hormones help the body use or store the energy that comes from food. For example, insulin helps control the amount of sugar (a source of energy) in the blood. The pancreas releases insulin and other hormones when they are needed. The hormones enter the bloodstream and travel throughout the body.

More than 100 different types of cancer are known—and several types of cancer can develop in the pancreas. Most pancreatic cancers begin in the ducts that carry pancreatic fluids. A rare type of pancreatic cancer begins in the cells that produce insulin and other hormones. These cells are called islet cells, or the islets of Langerhans. Cancers that begin in these cells are called islet cell cancer.

As pancreatic cancer grows, the tumor may invade organs that surround the pancreas, such as the stomach or small intestine. Pancreatic cancer cells also may break away from the tumor and spread to other parts of the body. When pancreatic cancer cells spread, they often form new tumors in lymph nodes and the liver, and sometimes in the lungs or bones. The new tumors have the same kind of abnormal cells and the same name as the primary (original) tumor in the pancreas. For example, if pancreatic cancer spreads to the liver, the cancer cells in the liver are pancreatic cancer cells. The disease is metastatic pancreatic cancer; it is not liver cancer.

At Cancer Treatment Centers of America (CTCA), we use many tools to help you fight pancreatic cancer on all fronts. A powerful combination of traditional and new, innovative therapies are provided by cancer experts who work with you to determine the appropriate combination of therapies, which may include:

• Surgery is often used to treat pancreatic cancer. Surgery may help prevent future complications, such as blockage or bleeding.

• Intensity Modulated Radiation Therapy (IMRT), an advanced form of conformal radiotherapy, may be used to treat pancreatic cancer. IMRT employs a powerful, advanced computer program that helps radiation oncologists and medical physicists plan a precise dose of radiation in three dimensions, based on individual tumor size, shape and location. Remarkably, it allows for higher radiation doses than traditional radiotherapy methods, while sparing more of the surrounding healthy tissue.

• Fractionated-Dose Chemotherapy divides a powerful dose of drugs into smaller doses, given over several days. This approach exposes pancreatic cancer cells to the drugs for a longer period of time, while also seeking to reduce the unpleasant side effects often experienced with larger doses.

In addition the therapies described above, CTCA enriches your pancreatic cancer treatment by offering complementary/alternative therapies such as naturopathic medicine, nutritional therapy, mind-body medicine, image enhancement, and spiritual support. CTCA is with you every step of the way in what truly is the fight of your life.

Next Topic: Conventional Treatments for Pancreatic Cancer