Pancreatic/colorectal cancer Flashcards
Pancreatic Cancer
general
4th leading cause of death in the United States
High-risk groups:
African Americans and individuals of Jewish ancestry
7% have a family history of pancreatic cancer in a first-degree relative
Categories:
Endocrine pancreatic cancer
Develop from cells in the endocrine gland of the pancreas
Exocrine pancreatic cancer (95%)
Develop from ductal or acinar cells of the pancreas
Cystic neoplasms
Can be mistaken for benign cysts which are common
Exocrine Pancreatic Cancer
general
Adenocarcinoma
Most common neoplasm of the pancreas
60% arise in the head
20% arise in the body or tail
20% involve the entire pancreas
Types:
Ductal carcinoma (90%)
Acinar cell carcinoma (~5%)
Squamous cell carcinoma – rare
Adenosquamous cell carcinoma - rare-Aggressive cancer with poor prognosis
Colloid carcinoma
Adenocarcinoma pancreatic cancer
RF
Smoking (thought to cause 30%)
Chronic pancreatitis (>20 years)
High alcohol consumption
Obesity
Type II diabetes mellitus *
Metformin use and possibly aspirin use may reduce the risk of pancreatic cancer slightly
Insulin use and glucagon-like peptide-1-based therapy may increase the risk
Inherited genetic syndrome (5-10%)
Multiple endocrine neoplasia 1
Hereditary breast and ovarian cancer syndrome (BRCA1 & BRCA2 mutations)
Familial pancreatic carcinoma
Hereditary pancreatitis (PSS1 mutation)
Peutz-Jeghers syndrome
Lynch syndrome
Non-polyposis colorectal cancer
Increased risk for other cancers at a young age
said dont need to memeorize list
pancreatic cancer
Sx
nonspecific and GI
Symptoms are similar to chronic pancreatitis
Nonspecific symptoms
Poor appetite
Weight loss
Gastrointestinal symptoms
Abdominal pain
Severe, belt-shaped epigastric pain or left upper quadrant pain
Radiates to the back (worse at night)
Nausea/vomiting
Jaundice
Obstruction of extrahepatic bile ducts (tumors in the pancreatic head)
Malabsorption
Pale, greasy stools that float in the toilet (diarrhea)
Impaired glucose tolerance
Pancreatic Cancer
PE findings
Signs
Courvoisier sign- Enlarged, nontender gallbladder (poor prognosis)
Sister Mary Joseph’s sign-Hard, palpable nodule bulging into the umbilicus- Metastasis of a malignant cancer in the abdomen or pelvis
Hypercoagulability
Trousseau syndrome (10%)- Recurring, migratory thrombophlebitis
Red, tender extremities
Splenic vein thrombosis
Sister Mary Joseph’s sign – umbilical nodule
pancreatic cancer
Lab findings
By the time of diagnosis, 90% of patients have locally advanced tumors that involve retroperitoneal structures, spread to lymph nodes, or metastasized to the liver or lung
Labs
CBC with differential
CMP
↑ alkaline phosphatase and ↑ bilirubin with bile duct obstruction or liver metastasis
Lipase and amylase
Normal or minimally elevated###
CA 19-9, CEA, and CA 125 (tumor markers)
Used to monitor cancer progression in diagnosed patients, as well as treatment efficacy
Not sensitive or specific enough to be used for population screening
Pancreatic cancer
imaging studies
Imaging
Abdominal ultrasound
First test performed if jaundice is the presenting symptom
CT scan of the abdomen and pelvis with contrast
Indications:
Initial symptoms are abdominal pain and weight loss
If ultrasound reveals a pancreatic mass
Alternative test MRI/MRCP (magnetic resonance imaging/magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography)
Endoscopic ultrasound (EUS)
Used when other diagnostic tests are inconclusive or to perform fine needle aspiration
FYI…thrombosis of unknown origin may be caused by an undiagnosed malignancy
(common due to pancreatic cancer, pulmonary cancer, or prostatic cancer – 3Ps)
pancreatic cancer
whipple procedure
indications
Procedure of choice
Resection of the pancreatic head, distal stomach, duodenum, gallbladder, and common bile duct
Indicated for cancers strictly limited to the head of the pancreas, periampullary area, and duodenum
pancreatic cancer
Adjuvant chemotherapy and radiation therapy(2) with Symptomatic treatment(3)
Adjuvant chemotherapy and radiation therapy
Initiated following Whipple procedure
Initiated for patients with localized, but unresectable tumors → noncurative
Symptomatic treatment
Analgesics (opioids)
Procedures to maintain biliary patency
Pancreatic enzyme supplementation
pancreatic cancer
prognosis
Patients undergoing resection
Medial survival: ~18 months
Carcinoma of the body or tail of the pancreas
Poor prognosis
80-85% present with advanced unresectable disease
5-year survival rate: 2-5%
Metastatic disease
5-year survival rate: ~3%
Colorectal Cancer (CRC)
general
3rd most common cancer (among both men and women)
2nd most common cause of death due to cancer in the United States
Most common cancer of the GI tract
Incidence and mortality rates have been declining
>50% of the cases occur in the rectum and sigmoid colon
95% are adenocarcinomas
Most colorectal cancers (CRCs) arise from polyp
CRC
etiology
Colorectal polyps
Abnormal tissue outgrowths arising from the colonic mucosa and extending into the lumen
Most common lesions from which CRC arises
CRC
Sessile vs Pedunculated polyps
Morphology
Sessile: polyp without a stalk, with growth adjacent to the mass
Pedunculated: polyp with a stalk
30% of the population has polyps by the age of 50