Pancreatic Cancer Treatment

Question: Pancreatic cancer and best treatment facilities? A very dear friend of my husband and I was just diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. It has spread to a spot on the liver and lymph nodes. Cancer Treatment Centers of America do not take his insurance. We live near the East Coast. Any suggestions on top notch facilities? Staying in my small town for treatment is not an option. Thanks.

Answer: Johns Hopkins for sure. They ahve a Pancreatic Cancer Message Board where you can ask many questions regarding treatment, either there or at other facilities. Unfortunately, unless he is Stage I, the treatment at any cancer facility is goingot be the same, which is chemo. At this point the idea is to buy as much time as possible while waiting for better therapies to come along. here's the link to JHU: http://www.path.jhu.edu/pancreas_chat/

Question: Can some guide me regarding pancreatic cancer treatment? My mother has been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer around a year back and she is undergoing chemo currently. Her CA19.9 started with 3200 and came down to 80 with the help of chemo. Now the reading has started shooting again and is currently at 206.Can you please reply to me suggesting some medicines or methods we can adopt for her. Currently her age is 55 and she is in India. thanks Sruti

Answer: I don't think people online will be able to give you answers to what medications would be required. However, my aunt had pancreatic cancer. She was treated at MD Anderson. However, by the time they found out the details about her cancer, it had already spread and they weren't able to do much for her. She did however, live 2 yrs past the time she was initially diagnosed. Good luck to you. Hope that your mom gets better. Always remember to cherish all the moments that you have.

Question: Is there a site that has info on pancreatic cancer treatments and trials from other countries?

Answer: Here are some links to info..you could check out Cancer Treatment Centers of America...they are pricey though and sometimes there might be issues with insurance coverage, I have heard... Pancreatic Cancer http://www.clinicaltrials.gov/ct/search;jsessionid=3B474445965E9D7000942E309A0253EC?term=pancreatic+cancer&submit=Search (clinical trials for pancreatic cancer..hit map tab for local trials and don’t forget to turn pages) http://www.cancer.gov/Templates/doc.aspx?viewid=7C5CCBC9-ADAD-4683-8448-E705FB912971&ReqUrl=%2Fclinicaltrials%2Fsearch (listing for clinical trials with National Cancer Institute…use drop down menu and zip code to find trials) http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/bv.fcgi?rid=gnd.section.108&ref=toc (genes and pancreatic cancer) http://www.cancer.org/docroot/NWS/content/NWS_1_1x_Quit_Smoking_if_Pancreatic_Cancer_Runs_in_the_Family.asp (smoking and pancreatic cancer) http://www.touchbriefings.com/pdf/1236/Picozzi.pdf (an article..need adobe reader) http://www.pparx.org (free or low costs medicines for people without insurance) http://www.copays.org/ (copay assistance for pancreas cancer) Nutrition and Support for cancer patients http://www.cancer.org/docroot/MBC/MBC_6.asp? (nutrition for cancer patients) http://www.cancer.org/docroot/MIT/mit_0.asp (supporting cancer patients) 3 books on disease symptoms and treatments you could also get these books on ebay or amazon or a half price book store. (last two are very similar).. 1.Oxford Handbook of Clinical Medicine 2.Handbook of Diseases (Lippencott) 3.Professional Guide to Diseases (Springhouse)

Question: What is the experimental treatment Patrick Swaze has undergone for the pancreatic cancer? So, I've insitgated a disagreement without anyone knowing what this treatment is? Sorry...instigated.

Answer: It's very true that people die from chemo....one of the major "side effects" of long term chemo and radiation is....cancer!!! I do agree that it has saved lives and unfortunately it's the only thing the medical system has right now. The bad thing about chemo is that it kills your immune system and you need that immune system to fight cancer...which is why cancer very often comes back (probably was always there) after people are "cured". We need to shift our focus to working on helping people's immune systems to be able to fight cancer off in the first place.

Question: Looking for alternative treatment for pancreatic cancer , support groups and suvivors, any leads ?What works?

Answer: there is an herb that has been used to treat cancer that seems to do very well. Pau D'arco it has been proven to shrink tumors and has been used successfully for melanoma. there are some other herbs that would help you, if you need more information contact me: widowmaker54@yahoo.com

Question: Any effective treatment for pancreatic cancer (pancrease head)? The tumor is large , around 5 cm by 3cm by 3cm, but she is old , over 85, any good treatment is recommended , except resectable surgery

Answer: Pancreatic cancer is one of the most serious of cancers. It develops when cancerous cells form in the tissues of your pancreas — a large organ that lies horizontally behind the lower part of your stomach. Your pancreas secretes enzymes that aid digestion and hormones that help regulate the metabolism of carbohydrates. Treatment for pancreatic cancer depends on the stage and location of the cancer as well as on your age, overall health and personal preferences. Surgical options are the only way to eliminate pancreatic cancer is an operation to remove the tumor, which include Whipple procedure (pancreatoduodenectomy), Total pancreatectomy, Distal pancreatectomy, Radiation therapy, and Chemotherapy.- For further details please see the source link -

Question: is there is any treatment for pancreatic cancer in unani/ayurveda/homeopaty? as my mom diag with state 3 pancreatic cancer 15 days back any suggestions please

Answer: There are treatments in Ayurveda and homeopathy. and in Unani also there may be some treatments. Many persons practicing these medicine also claim to have complete cure methods, but I have not come across any cure. The only proven treatment for cancer is surgery, Chemotherapy and Radiation Therapy only. Even by the a Stage III Pancreatic cancer can not be cured. Only the life of the patient can be extended if we have all the treatments in full. So it is better to continue with these treatments as CANCER IS STILL AN ENIGMA. -

Question: What's the latest in pancreatic Stage 4 cancer treatment?

Answer: Stage 4 pancreatic cancer can be divided into two stages.Stage IVa is when the cancer is locally confined but involves adjacent organs or blood vessels making it impossible to surgically remove.StageIV b is metastatic disease,where the cancer has spread to other organs usually the liver.Stage IVa patients can be given a disease free period that can last months to years but,they definitely will not be cured.IVb patients the goal is to help the symptoms and alleviate pain as well as maintain nutrition..Chemo therapy,palliative surgery or chemo/radiation is usually used in stage IVa patients if the performance status of the patient is good.Gemzar is usually the standard drug.IVb there are several procedures that are used to help alleviate pain.There are some clinical trials looking at biological therapy,gene therapy and photo dynamic therapy.Unfortunately,not much progress has been made with this particular cancer.

Question: where is the best place to go for treatment of pancreatic cancer? The best doctor? has anyone heard about an oncologist in NJ though? just was something in newspaper that he had breakthrough success in PC. dont remember name though

Answer: There are several places you can go. The best Cancer treatment hospitals are in Boston, Massachusetts, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Massachusetts General, and Children's Hospital. There is also Johns Hopkins and pf course what is called Slater-Kittering in NY.

Question: how long to live if Dr's find you have advanced Pancreatic cancer with no treatment otherwise healthy woman?

Answer: Pancreatic cancer is fatal. It is unknown the length of time one person has to live. It depends on how fast it spreads and if it mets to any other part of the body.

Question: Has anyboby gotten treated with Escozul? Is an non traditional treatment for Cancer found in Cuba? I need any information on how I can get in contact with Jose or Niurys Monzon who produce the product in Cuba, or also if anyone has gotten it from Labiofarm S.A. If anybody has gotten the treatment I would really appreciate any feed back. Im in a rush to start my dad on the tretment for his pancreatic cancer condition. Any info will ge greatly appreciated.

Answer: There is a website for the product: http://www.escozul.com/ A word of caution . . there is no scientific evidence that this venom is of any benefit to people with cancer. No Clinical Trials have been conducted to study dosage, side effects, or safety of the product. It's an untested treatment. You can check Entrez PubMed though for the results of other types of scorpion venom used in medical research. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?DB=pubmed

Question: My grandmother has Pancreatic cancer, what are the chances of her surviving? I just found out today that my grandmother has been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and she is 81. Does people with pancreatic cancer live for long? What are the treatments? I would be devastated if she died, I've only meet her twice in my life since she lives in another country and since I'm 15 I can't just go and see her. When I write a letter to her, what should I say?

Answer: im sorry to hear about your grandmother most of the time people with pancreatic cancer don't survive but you need to find out what stage she's in to see if they got it to late but always have hope my grandfather died from pancreatic cancer but they also found it to late

Question: looking for cancer treatment, using scorpion venom? A man in central Florida claimed cured of brain cancer. Will it work for pancreatic cancer? Heard it is available to all in Cuba. Can it be gotten in the U.S.?

Answer: I do not know about the venom, but, I am currently in the Bahamas with my Mother who has Terminal Lung Cancer. There is a clinic here that has been in operation for over 30 years. We have been here for 2 of our 8 week stay, and today was really neat. A lot of the patients stuck around in the meeting room/ waiting room to visit, as is usual. There were 40 people all talking and laughing, talking about cancer and life, the returning patients talk about how bad their cancer was 4, 8, 10 even 14 years ago when they started coming to the clinic, the cancer that has since disappeared. There is nothing dangerous or foreign to the treatment, just building up you immune system in a very effective manner. If you want to know more contact me or go to www.immunemedicine.com I cannot tell you how impressed I am with what I have seen and how my Mother has already improved. I know one man who was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, he skipped all US, conventional (poisonous, dangerous) options and went to the Bahamas and is doing great now.

Question: Radiation with chemo for pancreatic cancer after whipple procedure? If tumor and resection went fine why chemo? wont it give you cancer later? why is europe med treatment sans radiation??

Answer: There are many reasons why treatment is offered after successful surgery: 1) Recurrences happen quicker/more often when no further therapy done 2) Anatomically, the pancreas is a difficult organ to remove and get good clean tissue margins around the tumor; the amount of normal tissue around a tumor might be non-existent to vanishingly thin, hence chance for local recurrence is high. 3) Pancreas cancer has a striking predilection for spread to the liver, one of the reasons chemo is offered (the other: it makes the radiation work better). It may have already spread at the time of surgery and not be apparent by any test. Chemo and radiation can cause cancer in small numbers of patients. It is a trade-off, but one we feel is worth it. The truly tiny risk of future treatment-induced cancer against the overwhelming likelihood of recurrent pancreas cancer and near-certain death seems worth it to me (and to nearly all patients). As for Renee's moronic answer, treatment is based on randomized controlled trials which have demonstrated the following: 1) GITSG study from 1985 showed small benefit in survival in chemoradiotherapy + surgery over surgery alone. This study was small however. 2) Subsequent EORTC (European) group failed to confirm findings in similar study. However this study included patients other than pancreas cancer, which may have raised to survival for surgery-only patients, and hence erasing any difference between the 2 treatment arms. 3) ESPAC 1 trial compared surgery alone versus chemoradiotherapy after surgery versus chemo alone after surgery versus chemoradiotherapy + more chemo after surgery: This study showed a benefit only for chemo after surgery, but this study has been widely criticized by experts because of results analysis and major non-adherence to protocol by patients. The Europeans though were the major participants in these trials, and they tend to rely on the last study's results more heavily. Current trials suggest gemcitabine chemotherapy after surgery may have survival benefits. What is best is not known; clinical trial participation should be encouraged whenever possible to help sort out best therapy. However, prognosis is poor with surgery alone, and there is data to support "some" other therapy after surgery. Chemo is widely regarded as beneficial, radiation a little less clear, though in my opinion remains a standard of care for many. I hope that helps. God bless and best wishes

Question: I'm looking for treatments for pancreatic cancer, trials, best places to go and Dr.'s to see .?

Answer: The first place you should look is at www.webmd.com. The information on this site is very informative. As far as doctors, you should probably check out the biggest city nearest to you and go from there. Check their reputations, and even ask your own doctor who he/she recommends. There is an awesome cancer clinic where I live, and they have all of the up to date technology available. I'm in Ohio, where are you from? After I posted this, I looked at your other questions, and I'm assuming that you live in New York. You may want to look for a directory of cancer clinics available in New York City. As big a place as NYC, I'm sure you will be able to find good care there. Good luck and don't lose hope.

Question: My dad died of pancreatic cancer many years ago. Back then there wasn't anything a Dr could do. ? Have there been any advancements in treatment since 1980? I'd like to know being that pacreatic cancer may run in families. Thank you -40 somethin'

Answer: There have been many advancements in treatment since 1980, but even though there is new chemotherapy protocols, radiation/proton therapy, surgery (mainly the whipple procedure) and clinical trials, pancreatic cancer continues to be extremely deadly because the the pancreas is deep in the abdominal cavity and the cancer "hides" within the organ. The pancreas doesn't contain very much connective tissue so it has a weak, flesh-like consistency that does not resist the growth of tumor. Unfortunately because of this, the cancer is most often found when it is stage 4, and already metastasized to other areas of the body via bloodstream, which is why it is so deadly. At that point, the only thing that really can be done for someone is giving them palliative care and pain management. Improving the survival rate for a cancer like this one is why research and research funding is SO important.