institute for cancer research

Pancreatic Cancer Treatment

Introduction

The modalities for pancreatic cancer treatment involve a combination of both the conventional form of medicine and the alternative methods.

Pancreatic cancer is typically characterized by the presence of malignant cells that form in the tissue of the pancreas.

Treatment Options

There are a series of options available for pancreatic cancer treatment as well as alternative pancreatic cancer treatment. In this section, we have included a brief discussion of the main options available.

There are three main conventional options available for the pancreatic cancer treatment including surgery, radiation therapy and chemotherapy.

To begin with, surgery is considered to be one of the most effective options for the pancreatic cancer treatment. A surgeon will generally decide upon one of the following procedures to remove the tumor:

i) Whipple procedure: In this procedure, various body elements are removed including head of the pancreas, the gallbladder, part of the stomach, a portion of the small intestine and the bile duct.

ii) Total pancreatectomy: As a part of the pancreatic cancer treatment, this procedure involves removal of the whole pancreas, part of the stomach and the small intestine, the common bile duct, the gallbladder, spleen and the nearby lymph nodes.

iii) Distal pancreatectomy: This procedure involves removal of the body and tail of the pancreas and the spleen.

Palliative surgery is considered if the cancer has spread and cannot be removed. This type of procedure for the pancreatic cancer treatment generally includes the following options:

• Surgical biliary bypass
• Endoscopic stent placement
• Gastric bypass

In addition to surgical options, radiation therapy is also an effective option for the pancreatic cancer treatment. Using the high energy x-rays, this type of therapy provides the treatment by killing cancer cells. There are two main forms of administering radiation therapy, including external radiation therapy and internal radiation therapy.

Meanwhile, chemotherapy uses drugs to kill the cancer cells and also to stop their growth. Depending on the stage of cancer, chemotherapy is either administered through mouth or given by an injection into the muscle or vein.

Apart from the conventional and standard treatments, a series of alternative pancreatic cancer treatment options are also available along with those being tested in the clinical trials. Biologic therapy is one of the most common forms of treatments being tested in the clinical trials.

Main options for alternative pancreatic cancer treatment include the Tian Xian Liquid, Nutritional therapy, Acupuncture, Hyperbaric oxygen and the like.

The pancreatic cancer treatment plan for a particular patient is always devised in accordance with the patient’s overall medical history, general state of health and the specific stage of cancer.

© 2005 - Cancer Treatment - Prevention - Research - A.P.John Cancer Institute
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