Purple is my favorite color, it always has been and will always be. However, the color purple now has a more profound affect on not only me but my entire family. On April 3, 2016, we lost my grandfather to Pancreatic Cancer. This month he would have been 85 years old. So, recognizing his birthday and pancreatic cancer awareness in the same month is very sentimental.
Let’s be honest CANCER SUCKS! In 2016, pancreatic cancer has surpassed breast cancer and is now ranked third in the leading cause of cancer deaths in the United States. This year alone, it is estimated that 53,070 Americans will be diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, and 41,780 will die from the disease.
Unfortunately, seventy-one percent of these patients are more than likely to die within the first year of diagnosis. The survival rate of pancreatic cancer is a mere five years and a percentage of 8 percent amongst all other major forms of cancer. The population of which is most affected are African-Americans, who make up between 28 percent and 59 percent higher than the incidence rates for other racial/ethnic groups.
While the overall outlook of cancer incidence and deaths are declining, pancreatic cancer rates are steadily increasing. There is still no known cause for the majority of pancreatic diagnosis. Even still in most cases it is caught in the latter stage and does not warrant surgical intervention. Recognizing the symptoms is key– abdominal or back pain, weight loss, jaundice, loss of appetite, nausea, diabetes and changes in stool. Often times the symptoms are subtle and are initially attributed to other less serious and/or more common conditions. Currently, there are no measurable indicators, or traces detectable in the blood or other bodily fluids, that could pinpoint the existence of a pancreatic tumor.
If and when one is diagnosed the treatment options are limited. Surgery (often the Whipple procedure – removal of the pancreas head, the duodenum, a portion of the gallbladder, and sometimes part of the stomach ) offers the best chance of survival. A non-surgical option is chemotherapy, which often times includes radiation. At this time it is not considered a curative intervention. It is an outrage that there have only been four drugs that have been approved by the FDA since 1974. Sadly enough, most pancreatic cancer patients go either untreated or undertreated.
There is HOPE and it starts with you and me! With efforts of waging hope and advocating for those suffering and those who could potentially suffer from this life-threatening disease; we can change the outlook of pancreatic cancer. With the progression of the disease, it is hard for patients to participate in clinical trials. Therefore, instead of more clinical trials we need better designed clinical trials to match patients’ needs.
Let’s #wagehope together this November in efforts to double the survival by 2020!
Resources:
Pancreatic Cancer Action Network- Columbus Affiliate
The James Cancer and Solove Research Institute
Pancreatic Cancer Action Network
Wage Hope – Pancreatic Cancer Action Network.”Pancreatic Cancer Action Network. N.p., n.d. Web. 28 Oct. 2016.
