Pancreatic cancer Flashcards
State three symptoms of pancreatic carcinoma
painless jaundice
weight loss
N/V
upper abdo pain radiating to back
List three risk factors for pancreatic carcinoma
age, male, smoking, diet, obesity/diabetes, alcohol, chronic pancreatitis
What are the investigations for pancreatic carcinoma?
LFTs
Us
CT
ERCP
What is the treatment for pancreatic carcinoma?
surgery
curative if localised to pancreas: whipple’s procedure, pancreatectomy
Palliative- chemo, bile duct stenting, bypass
What is whipple’s procedure?
removes the head of the pancreas, duodenum, gallbladder, and bile duct. Used to treat tumours of the pancreas, intestine, and bile duct
Three signs of pancreatic cancer?
- Palpable gallbladder
- Jaundice
- Epigastric mass
- Thrombophlebitis migrans (Trousseau sign)
- Splenomegaly: PV thrombosis → portal HTN
- Ascites
What is the most common type of pancreatic cancer?
ductal adenocarcinoma
What is Courvoisier’s law?
In the presence of painless obstructive jaundice, a
palpable gallbladder is unlikely to be due to stones, therefore suspect malignancy
