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Pancreatic Cancer- The Silent Killer World Pancreatic day
The diagnosis of cancer of the pancreas is difficult and often late. The symptoms are not terribly specific and this is why the diagnosis is often at an advanced stage. Symptoms include jaundice (yellowing of skin and whites of the eyes), light-colored stools, dark urine, pain in the upper or middle abdomen and or back, unexplained weight loss, feeling tired, and poor appetite. With the exception of jaundice and color of stools and urine, none of these symptoms and signs are specific indicators that something is wrong, and even these are often late signs of disease (meaning by the time they occur the cancer is Stage I or greater.) There is one brand new, promising blood marker (GPC1) that may be helpful for detection. The definitive diagnosis requires confirmation by radiologic studies and or tissue biopsy of cancerous tissue. Sometimes a gastroenterologist will discover the disease with endoscopic techniques. Pancreatic cancer has a very high mortality and the later it is diagnosed (more advanced the stage) the poorer the survival.
About the Speaker

DR. VIJAY KUMAR KONTHAM
MD FRCA, HoD and Sr Consultant,Dept of Critical Care and Anaesthesiology,Apollo Hospitals, Healtcity, Visakhapatnam

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