Luciano Pavarotti was buried last weekend. He was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer about a year ago and until lately, seemed to be doing well. I actually assumed the diagnosis was an error because he lived so long.
This year about 37,000 people will be diagnosed with this cancer and 33,000 will die of it. The 5-year survival from this disease is around 5% and only a quarter of patients live past the first year. The only treatment is surgery and this is rarely successful in curing people. Only 7% of people with this disease are found at an early stage and of these, only one-fifth is cured with surgery.
Chemotherapy can help a little and there are newer drugs that may add to the benefits of chemotherapy but not much. At best all this treatment buys a couple of months, more or less.
Still, people want treatment. Many years ago, the only drug available was 5-fluorouracil, which was never proven to help. At that time I saw a psychiatrist (he was the patient) who had been recently diagnosed with advanced pancreatic cancer. My advice was to avoid chemotherapy-why make yourself feel worse with no up side. But, he couldn’t deal with no treatment and went to another oncologist to get chemotherapy.
The drug we now use to treat advanced pancreatic cancer, gemcitabine, does help, but as I said, only a little. Many people have had some temporary relief of their symptoms, mainly pain, with this drug. It is usually given along with one of many other chemotherapy drugs, but there hasn’t been any evidence that adding another drug is better than gemcitabine alone.
Another problem with pancreatic cancer is that it is nearly impossible to detect early. There is no screening test that will find early pancreatic cancers. This is why it is rare to find someone with just a small tumor that hasn’t spread. The only instances where it is found early is when it blocks the bile duct and causes a backup of bile. This turns the person yellow and is easy to spot. But this is rare. In fact, there are a few people with a hereditary form of the disease and the strategy there is just to operate to remove the pancreas before there is a chance for cancer to develop.
Heredity is a small risk factor for pancreatic cancer. The major ones are smoking and the one that sealed Pavarotti’s fate, obesity. Of course his extra weight may have kept him alive a bit longer than I would have expected. Not a great strategy. So as I keep saying eating healthy is still the best strategy for avoiding many cancers.
Tuesday, September 11, 2007
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15 comments:
What kind of healthy diet would you recommend? My Mother was diagnosed with stage III Pancreatic Cancer. She is currently undergoing Chemo and Tomography treatments at The City of Hope hospital.
my e-mail: seanbangert ( @ ) yahoo (.) com
I am sorry to hear about your mother. My sense is that the healthiest diet is one high in fruits and vegetables and low in fatty meats. In general people who eat this way have a lower risk of developing cancer but it is no guarantee. Genetics also plays a big role as does our environment. At this point your mother needs to eat to maintain her weight so any diet she favors and can accept is the best. She is past the prevention stage.
Well done article and video:
http://www.ivanhoe.com/channels/p_channelstory.cfm?storyid=20934
By the time you see this - it will probably be archived (so that means it won't be free anymore on Ivanhoe.com)
But, the newsletter sends Ivanhoe's latest Medical Breakthroughs (and the videos are free then)
Not all are on Pancreatic cancer, but the information is likely going to be life-changing, or maybe life-saving for someone.
Healthy lifestyle may cut the risk of pancreatic cancer.
http://www.mdconsult.com/das/news/body/134594266-2/itwj/0/207694/1.html?pos=archinternmed
A new article in the Archives of Internal Medicine
I was diagnosed a month ago, (With unresctable, but no mets) and am dismayed by the general acceptance of the fatality of this cancer. It seems to be 'business as usual'. There are promising trials, but my MD's are not interested in two dose chemo or novel non chemo treatments, like curcumin. The experts are Tempero, and Venook of UCSF and Von Hoff from Scottsdale. Anyone else angry? I feel like promising meds and treatments should be more easily available. I'm still well, but my appetitie is gone, and eating is not much fun. Help me here, Kay
My Dad was diagnosed over 2 years ago stage 4 w/mets to liver & lungs (he was given 3 months)
He refused chemo & tried IV C infusions he is now a stage 1B
NO mets & plays golf 3-4 days a week
and has no pain. The NIH is using my Dad's case in research
NO to sugar, processed foods & red meat!!! chemo kills
also make sure to clean/soak toothbrushes with efferdent tablets each day. germs enter through the gums, Harvard did a study about the correlation of PC & periodontal DX
Surviving a diagnosis of advanced pancreatic cancer is wonderful and deserves study to understand how it happened. Many feel that somehow the immune system is able to recognize the cancer as a foreign invader and reject it. This rarely happens.
As for avoiding sugar, red meat, etc., I wish it were that easy. Also hard to prove. As for chemotherapy killing, Lance Armstrong (along with hundreds of thousand of others) would reject that statement.
Hmmmm...some interesting comments here. I don't generally contribute to these blogs but I feel compelled to do so. I was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer (stage 3) in August of 1996 at age 53. I had a 3 cm, andenocarcinoma on the head of my pancreas. For treatment the doctors suggested a Whipple procedure (surgery), Chemo (5-FU for 6 weeks-one week on and one week off), and 28 days of radiation simultaneously. After the operation the doctors didn’t give me much hope for survival because there were 13 lymph nodes removed and three were positive for cancer. During all this I did a lot of reading and believe that DIET has a great effect on PC. I completely change my lifestyle and diet at the same time. I take massive amount of vitamins and do not eat any red meat or drink any liquor of any kind as well as a lot of other things. I'm in great health and have been told by two oncologists if I am to die from cancer it will not be from Pancreatic Cancer! I think after 13years I'm qualified to share my feelings about diet and it's effects on this cancer.
Kay -
I was diagnosed March 27th due to a blocked bile duct. Yellow is not a good thing. My tumor is also unresctable, but has not spread. They installed a by-pass stint and I have begun Chemo treatment.
I experienced a rapid 10% weight loss, but that has now stablized. Everything literally tasted like cardboard. My Dr. prescribed MEGESTROL ACET for my appetite and I'm now an eating machine. I have not regained any of the weight but I'll do anything to stop the weight loss.
Bill
Robert,
I've never blogged but there's a first time for everything. My husband was diagnosed with stage 2B pancreatic cancer in Dec 08. He had the whipple procecure in Jan 09, has finished 6 weeks of radiation and is now in the middle of his six months of chemo. The weight loss is horrible. He is now taking megace which is helping but every week when he goes for chemo, he loses another 2-4 pounds. We actually think he eats quite well since he's been on the megace. He also does high protein shakes but we can't seem to stop the weight loss. His doctors never suggest anything - WE do all the research and then ask THEM for a new drug. Today we're picking up the prescritpion form of marijuana to see if it will help with the nausea. I'll take ANY suggestions you have as far as diet and weight gain. Your blog is encouraging.
Jodi,
I forced myself to eat during the chemo and radiation. Anything that I could get down. Chemo has the effect of making everything taste metallic. I also tried to eat all the time (nuts, fruits, yogurt) not just at meal time...grazing is the term. I gave up red meat and pork. Only meats I ate at that time and to this day eat are fish and chicken. You might try large amounts of vitamin B-12 as it doesn't hurt the effects of the chemo but has helped in reducing the side effects of the chemo. I would suggest you get a copy of "Beating Cancer with Nutrition" by Dr. Patrick Quillan...great read and some very good advise about vitamins, foods and cancer.
Robert,
I just got back on this site today and I'm so glad I did! I already ordered that book and should have it tomorrow. I can't wait to start reading it. I did read one review of the book where the lady said it was a little overwhelming because the list of supplements was so long and you don't know exactly what to try. How did you know what supplements to take? Did you try the Immunopower (??!) that Dr. Quillan markets? The comments were that it was pretty expensive but that it DOES work. I will try ANYTHING at this point for my husband. Thank you so much for your reply. Take care!
Jodi,
I did not buy the Immunopower but made a similar mix for myself. I have a list of the vitamins I took and take to this day. If you would like I will be happy to e-mail them to you.
Robert,
Thanks - yes please email your list to me. I'd love to take a look at it. My husband is having a procedure tomorrow to hopefully break up a couple kidney stones. It's always something!
Jodi
(jodifair@woh.rr.com)
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