Why is pancreatic cancer difficult to detect early? What are the main detection methods?

Pancreatic cancer is one of the malignant tumors with a very poor prognosis. Early detection is one of the most important measures to improve the prognosis, but the early detection rate is less than 5%. A famous expert in my country who has devoted his life to studying pancreatic diseases was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer at an advanced stage. The reasons for delaying early detection are:

There are no symptoms in the early stages of the tumor: There is evidence that pancreatic cancer has a preclinical "latency" period of months or even years before the tumor "appears."

Patient delay: Pancreatic cancer lacks specific symptoms in the early stages. Patients only experience upper abdominal discomfort, pain, and anorexia, which can occur with both benign and malignant diseases. These symptoms are not taken seriously by patients, who may think they have "stomach problems" and are not given symptomatic treatment. Patients only seek medical attention when the symptoms become unbearable or treatment is ineffective, but it is too late.

Doctors did not take the patient's vague medical history seriously enough and did not conduct appropriate examinations. Even after pancreatic cancer patients developed jaundice, it took up to 5 weeks to confirm the diagnosis.

There is a lack of convenient and fast auxiliary detection methods capable of diagnosing early pancreatic cancer and medical institutions with corresponding diagnosis and treatment levels.

So, is pancreatic cancer really difficult to detect? No, the following points can help you:

Screening of high-risk groups for pancreatic cancer: Based on the high-risk factors for pancreatic cancer mentioned above, suspected high-risk groups are screened out through questionnaire surveys of the general population. Ultrasound and tumor markers (CA19-9, CEA, CA242) are performed on the suspected high-risk groups to screen out the high-risk groups. Imaging, endoscopy, and endoscopic ultrasound examinations are performed on the high-risk groups to detect early pancreatic cancer.

Pay attention to the non-specific early symptoms of pancreatic cancer: It is difficult to confirm or exclude pancreatic cancer with simple clinical manifestations, such as if you are over 45 years old and have the following symptoms:

Jaundice, unexplained weight loss of more than 10%; unexplained upper abdominal or lower back pain; unexplained indigestion; sudden onset of diabetes in the absence of susceptibility factors such as a family history of diabetes or obesity; a history of one or more "congenital" pancreatitis; unexplained steatorrhea, etc., without positive physical signs and negative routine imaging examinations, should be considered as the possibility of pancreatic cancer and further follow-up examinations should be conducted to avoid missed diagnosis.

Reasonable application of imaging examination methods: Currently, commonly used ultrasound, CT, MRI and other examinations are disappointing in detecting early pancreatic cancer. Due to their poor sensitivity and low resolution, they are limited as screening methods for high-risk groups. However, due to their convenience, safety and low cost, B-ultrasound and tumor marker CA19-9 are often the first choice for patients suspected of pancreatic tumors. People over 50 years old should be examined once a year. The application of high-resolution 64-row or 128-row CT and 3G MRI is expected to detect early pancreatic cancer.

Endoscopic ultrasound, intraductal ultrasound and transoral pancreatoscopy are good methods for detecting early pancreatic cancer with high sensitivity. They are best for high-risk patients.

The examination is done once every two years. The disadvantages are that it is expensive, somewhat painful (invasive examination), requires high technical skills and special equipment.

The above are the main examination methods for pancreatic cancer.

Expert Tips: If you have symptoms of pancreatic disease, you can choose the appropriate treatment according to your symptoms, but do not delay diagnosis, and do not let your life be ruined by hesitation. You should go to a regular hospital for treatment in time to avoid delaying the disease and causing serious consequences. If you have other questions, please consult our online experts or call for consultation. Believe in miracles, and wish you health, happiness, and joy!

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