A tumor in the pancreas is often present for a long time before someone notices it. Pancreatic cancer is often not accompanied by complaints and symptoms in the beginning. These are only observed when the cancer has progressed somehow.
There are some early signs, however, but they are often vague and cannot be immediately linked to pancreatic cancer. The symptoms and complaints also vary because the tumor can be located in different locations in the pancreas (head, body or tail). The nature of the complaints therefore depends on the location and size of the tumor and on disorders in organs that have been affected by the tumor. The complaints generally only arise when the tumor has grown into another organ or into the nerve pathways around the pancreas.
Some common (sometimes vague) complaints and symptoms in patients with pancreatic cancer are:
- pain.
- jaundice.
- disturbed bowel pattern.
- weight loss.
- new onset/sudden diabetes (text in Dutch only).
- water belly.
- pancreatitis (text in Dutch only).
Pancreatic cancer first spreads to local lymph nodes and then to other organs. This is often the liver, but the cancer can also spread to other organs, such as the lungs, peritoneum or bones.
A tumor in or around the head of the pancreas is often discovered earlier than a tumor further along in the pancreas because of earlier symptoms, especially jaundice. A tumor in or around the head can block the large bile duct.
The common bile duct runs through the head of the pancreas. Blockage of the common bile duct causes bile to accumulate in the bile ducts, the gallbladder and the liver. Because the liver cannot get rid of the bile, you can become tired and listless. If the bile can no longer flow into the duodenum, the digestion of food is disrupted. Normally, the bile in the intestine colours the stool brown. Blockage of the common bile duct or other bile ducts results in thin, light-coloured or white stools. Most of the bile pigment that accumulates in the liver is absorbed into the blood and ends up in the skin and the whites of the eyes, among other places. This can cause a yellowish, greyish skin and yellowish whites of the eyes (jaundice) and itching all over the body.
Another part of the bile pigment enters the urine via the kidneys, which filter the blood. This makes the urine darker in color.
If the symptoms persist, your GP will need to examine you. If the other symptoms persist for several weeks, it is also advisable to consult your GP.