Medical care has advanced immeasurably since 1971, and many cancer sufferers now often have more of a fighting chance as deputy features editor John Baker found out:
Medical care has advanced immeasurably since 1971, and many cancer sufferers now often have more of a fighting chance. But there is one cancer where the survival rate has not changed in that time – and campaigners are desperate for that to change. Pancreatic cancer is a painful and horrible way to die and sufferers typically experience weight loss, jaundice, nausea and vomiting, and extreme pain before they die. So for their sakes, and the sake of their families, it is a fight worth tackling, as deputy features editor John Baker discovered.
NOVEMBER is Pancreatic Cancer Awareness Month, a campaign spearheaded by Pancreatic Cancer UK.
Pancreatic cancer has the highest fatality rate of any cancers in the UK, and is heading towards being the fourth most common cause of cancer deaths – the top four are currently breast, lung, bowel and prostate cancer.
Often known as the ‘silent killer’, UK pancreatic cancer survival rates are poorer than in many other countries, including many European countries, the US, Canada and Australia.
Last month it came to prominence when it claimed arguably its highest-profile victim, the chief executive and co-founder of Apple, Steve Jobs.
But others who have died from pancreatic cancer include actor Patrick Swayze, Italian opera singer Luciano Pavarotti, and actor Michael Landon, who lasted just three months after being diagnosed.
The pancreas is a large gland that lies behind the stomach at the back of the abdomen. Shaped a bit like a flattened leaf, it has two very important functions.
As well as making a number of different enzymes (digestive juices) that break down food so that nutrients can be absorbed into the body, it also makes hormones that are released into the blood stream.
One of these is insulin, which regulates the amount of sugars in blood and around the body. The blood supply to the liver, intestines, kidneys and lower part of the body can all be in contact with the pancreas – which is why it is such an important organ.
While more than 7,600 people are diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in the UK every year, less than three per cent of people diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in the UK will survive more than five years. And these figures have not changed for 40 years.
So this year Pancreatic Cancer UK is making an extra push by launching its new Campaign for Hope, marking an ambitious new goal to double survival rates for pancreatic cancer patients in the UK by 2020. This would help to save the lives of up to 250 people each year.
In the Anglia region 22.1 per cent of those diagnosed live a year, but only 5.2 per cent reach three years and just 3.1 per cent reach five.
A press officer said: “We are appealing to the public to get involved with fundraising and help raise much needed cash to reach the goal of doubling survival rates within the next five years.
“We’re asking you to help us raise awareness of pancreatic cancer by fundraising and joining our Campaign For Hope. We need you to get involved by raising awareness in your local community, contacting your MP, fundraising for us and wearing our Ribbon of Hope.”
An awareness month pack is now available by contacting the Pancreatic Cancer UK office on 02035357090 or visit www.pancreaticcancer.org.uk/fundraising/pancreatic-cancer-awareness-month
WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW:
PANCREATIC cancer is the fifth most common form of cancer in the UK.
Out of the 21 people who will be diagnosed today, only one of them is likely to be alive in five years time.
It has a very poor survival rate, mainly because it does not display any symptoms in the early stages.
Furthermore, as it grows, the symptoms will depend on the type and the location of the cancer within the pancreas.
Many of the early symptoms are common for lots of other illnesses and diseases, which can also delay correct diagnosis.
The more common signs to look out for are as follows:
- Pain: Often starts as general discomfort or pain in the stomach area that might spread to your back. It is sometimes made worse by lying down or after eating, and is relieved by sitting forward.
The pain might start off as sporadic, but as the cancer becomes larger it may become constant.
- Jaundice: This is when your skin and the whites of your eyes turn yellow. It can cause your urine to become very dark, your stools to become pale and your skin to itch. It develops when there is a build up of a chemical in your blood called bilirubin. Jaundice can also be caused by other conditions.
- Unexplained weight loss: This is common because of the interference with digestion (the enzymes produced by the pancreas aid digestion), sugar metabolism, and loss of appetite.
- Later symptoms might include: Diabetes, lethargy, bowel disturbances, nausea and vomiting, fever and shivering.
- If you are concerned at all about your symptoms, if they develop suddenly or cause you pain, you should contact your GP immediately.
‘I really wouldn’t wish it on my worst enemy’
Victoria Munton was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in June 2009 – and six weeks later she had gone.
When she finally went into Peterborough District Hospital at the age of 63, having suffered with stomach pains in silence for some time, her family noticed that she was actually quite jaundiced.
Her doctor diagnosed cirrhosis of the liver, but sent her for additional tests.
And those tests uncovered something else, something they had never considered, especially as there was no history of cancer in the family.
Her daughter Lucy (31), who lives in Oundle, said: “When my mum was diagnosed I had never heard of it before. Now, two years on, I know a lot more.
“The main thing is that people sitting in their homes may be experiencing similar symptoms, and if they do they need to get them checked out.
“The side effects are very similar to diabetes, or back problems. So many people think that it might be just a bad back when in actual fact it could be a life-threatening illness.”
Victoria did not tell her husband Peter and children Lucy, Jemima and Fleur how much she was suffering.
“Even when she was taken into hospital she had been doing the housework and looking after the cooking and cleaning,” Lucy said.
“She was very stubborn and didn’t want to go to the doctor’s, but we found out that she had been poorly for some time.
“But it wasn’t until she turned yellow that we realised something was wrong.
“They did a series of tests and after two weeks they found that she had a shadow on her liver, but further tests also revealed that she had pancreatic cancer.
“The doctor didn’t misdiagnose it, that’s why you send people in for tests. But he said that she might be out in 24 to 48 hours – she never came out.”
Victoria was moved to a specialist unit at Leicester Hospital, where a stent was fitted. But her condition deteriorated.
Lucy, whose partner’s name is Gary Bennett (29), said: “Because we had never heard of it, it was a particular shock, but it was probably the worst thing I have ever experienced in my life, there’s no other way to describe it.
“One of the last things they did was a gastric bypass to try to relieve her symptoms, but if we had known of the pain it would cause her we may have thought twice.
“She came out and within a week she had passed away. And when she did come out she was terrified, and suffered from hallucinations.”
When it was decided that nothing more could be done, it was Victoria’s last wish to be taken home, where she passed away peacefully on August 16.
Lucy said: “The hospital got on the phone to our local doctor and between them they made it possible for mum to spend her last night at home, surrounded by her family and much loved dog, Copper.
“She was in the final stages and was barely conscious, but I think she knew she was home.”
Lucy’s telemarketing company, Telechief, is constantly fund-raising for Pancreatic Cancer UK, making regular donations.
Lucy said: “At the time it was absolutely horrendous and for the first year it was so raw for all of us, it shook dad’s world.
“The doctors couldn’t have diagnosed it earlier – perhaps the hospital could have given us more information.
“Not enough money is spent on Pancreatic cancer, which is why the survival rate has not changed in 40 years. Not many people know about it and there is not as much research done as for other cancers.
“But by the end of the year it may be the fourth biggest cancer killer in the UK, so we need to create hard-hitting advertisements to raise awareness of it.
“We had never heard of it, but now I know one thing – I wouldn’t wish it on my worst enemy.”
http://www.peterboroughtoday.co.uk/news/features/pancreatic_cancer_the_silent_killer_remains_as_deadly_as_ever_1_3236021
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