Researchers discover two previously unrecognised symptoms associated with pancreatic cancer.
Researchers from the University of Oxford, in the United Kingdom, report on 23 symptoms that GPs should be aware of concerning patients with pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma, a common and lethal form of pancreatic cancer.
The findings, led by Dr Weiqi Liao, a data scientist at the University of Oxford, were presented in this year’s National Cancer Research Institute Festival. A key finding of the study is that many of these symptoms occur up to a year before the cancer is diagnosed.
The findings of this study may help improve the survival of pancreatic cancer patients by helping GPs diagnose the disease earlier, especially when both GPs and patients are aware of the potential significance of the symptoms present.
“When pancreatic cancer is diagnosed earlier, patients have a higher chance of survival. It is possible to diagnose patients when they visit their GP, but both patients and GPs need to be aware of the symptoms associated with pancreatic cancer,” Dr Liao said.
The study analysed data from 24,236 patients who were diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in England between 2000 and 2017. Researchers focused on elucidating the symptoms experienced by patients before they were diagnosed with cancer, and compared them with those of patients not diagnosed with cancer.
Among the key findings of the study was that yellowing of the skin (jaundice) and bleeding in the stomach or intestine were the two serious symptoms most commonly associated with pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC).
The study also listed 23 symptoms linked with the diagnosis of PDAC, including:
- yellowing of the skin;
- bleeding in the stomach or intestine;
- problems swallowing;
- diarrhoea;
- change in bowel habits;
- vomiting;
- indigestion;
- abdominal mass;
- abdominal pain;
- weight loss;
- constipation;
- fat in stool;
- abdominal swelling;
- nausea;
- flatulence
- heartburn;
- fever;
- tiredness;
- appetite loss;
- itching;
- back pain;
- thirst, and
- dark urine
Among these symptoms, the study identified nine symptoms that were linked with pancreatic neuroendocrine neoplasms, which included yellowing of the skin, blood in stool, diarrhoea, change in bowel habits, vomiting, indigestion, abdominal mass, abdominal pain, and weight loss.
The authors warn that most symptoms were not specific to pancreatic cancer and could be due to other conditions. However, patients diagnosed with pancreatic cancer had a higher chance of experiencing some of these non-specific symptoms up to one year before diagnosis.
“These new findings enable us to conduct further work on understanding symptoms that could suggest pancreatic cancer. This will help GPs to make decisions about who to refer for urgent tests, especially when patients have several seemingly non-specific symptoms,” Dr Liao said.
Now, Dr Liao is working with other researchers to confirm if their findings hold with data from other groups of patients. According to Dr Pippa Corrie is chair of the pancreatic workstream of the NCRI Upper Gastrointestinal Group, the findings of this study have some important potential implications.
“Being aware of the early symptoms of pancreatic cancer is crucial if we are to diagnose patients earlier and improve pancreatic cancer survival. This research could help GPs and their patients know more about the signs of pancreatic cancer. It’s vital that people speak to their GP if they notice these symptoms,” Dr Corrie said.
“Future research could help us develop tools for GPs to help them make referrals, especially when patients present with several non-specific symptoms,” she added.