As an oncologist with a family history of cancer, here’s what he wants you to know.
November is Pancreatic Cancer Awareness Month, which gives me an important reason to talk about my mother, Emily Couric, who died at age 54, 15 months after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. She remained healthy and energetic throughout her life, and upon her re-election to the State Senate she would become Lieutenant Governor of Virginia. Many believed she was destined to become Virginia’s first female governor, but we’ll never know.
More than 64,000 Americans diagnosed with pancreatic cancer Exocrine cancers per year (the most common and deadly, distinguished from less common cancers) neuroendocrine tumors). Like many people with pancreatic cancer, my mother’s diagnosis was late, when the cancer had spread to her liver. Like many people, she didn’t have any of the common risk factors, such as smoking, obesity or diabetes. Although symptoms of pancreatic cancer can include jaundice (yellowing of the eyes and skin), stomach and back pain, and weight loss, her case was a common condition in which less severe symptoms, including bloating and irregular bowel habits, are rare. He was not diagnosed for weeks. Even months. These symptoms are often attributed to causes such as gastroenteritis or irritable bowel syndrome before a CAT scan is finally performed and cancer becomes apparent. That was the case with my mom.
Emily spent the rest of her life battling hell, dealing with the severe side effects of her chemotherapy regimen, a blood clot in her lungs that nearly killed her during treatment, and conducting clinical trials in hotels far from home. Despite all these best efforts, as I have seen time and time again, nothing works. She passed away on October 18, 2001 with all of us by her side.
Her legacy includes the University of Virginia Emily Couric Clinical Cancer Center, which is discovering and testing new treatments for pancreatic cancer in clinical trials. Oncologists like me work to help pancreatic cancer patients live longer and better lives, but only 12 percent of patients are alive five years after diagnosis, compared with the average survival rate for those who cannot undergo surgery because their cancer has spread The term is less than one year. Therefore, many of us who work with people diagnosed with pancreatic cancer focus on early detection of the disease, forward Symptoms appear when the tumor is small and has not spread, giving the patient a greater chance of being cured by surgery. There is already evidence that the proportion of people diagnosed with early-stage, curable pancreatic cancer is increasing. The standard of care now includes early detection programs and screening of individuals in families for familial pancreatic cancer, which is defined as two first-degree relatives diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, such as two siblings or a parent and child.
But to save more lives, we need to do better. The Pancreatic Cancer Early Detection (PRECEDE) Alliance is an international, multi-institutional, collaborative group of experts working together to improve survival of patients with pancreatic cancer through improved early detection, screening and prevention, with the goal of significantly reducing deaths around the world. People with a family history of pancreatic cancer who visit PRECEDE sites receive genetic counseling and testing, and experts provide personalized recommendations for the use of MRI and endoscopic ultrasound (EUS), which are usually performed on an alternating basis annually, to screen for early, disease-free disease. Symptoms of pancreatic cancer. pancreatic cancer.These cancers can be removed with surgery forward They spread to other organs and become incurable. Individuals who do not have a family history of pancreatic cancer but have genetic mutations that increase risk (such as BRCA1, BRCA2, PALB2, and ATM) should also discuss screening with their doctor.
Like many cancers, pancreatic cancer is an especially insidious one because most people, like my mom, are diagnosed too late for successful intervention. I miss her every day. But for me, the best way to honor her memory is to be vigilant about my own health. That’s why my brother Jeff, my Aunt Katie, and I all participate in the PRECEDE program. Since its inception, 16 cases of early-stage pancreatic cancer have been detected, and these individuals are living proof that screening can save lives. If you would like to learn more for yourself or anyone you know who is affected by this disease, you can do so here.
Ray Wadlow is a gastrointestinal oncologist and director of the Hematology-Oncology Fellowship Program Works at the Inova Schar Cancer Institute and is our Katie Couric’s nephew.
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