Swayze's life and death shed light on pancreatic cancer

Sept. 15, 2009, WILKES-BARRE – Actor Patrick Swayze’s pancreatic cancer diagnosis 20 months ago put the media spotlight on a fast-moving disease.

“While pancreatic cancer has few, if no, symptoms at an early stage, we do know risk factors that may contribute to the disease,” said Thanjavur Ravikumar, M.D., FACS, chair of Geisinger’s oncology service line.

Pancreatic cancer is the fourth leading cause of cancer-related death in both men and women. Because it is usually diagnosed at an advanced stage, the survival rate is poor compared with other types of cancer, at just 5% within the five years of pancreatic cancer diagnosis.

Unfortunately, overall incidence and mortality rates have changed very little in the last several decades. In 2008, 114 new cases of pancreatic cancer were diagnosed at Geisinger Health System. This year alone, The National Cancer Institute estimates 42,470 new cases of pancreatic cancer and 35,240 pancreatic cancer-related deaths. 

Risk factors for pancreatic cancer include: age, smoking, diabetes, being male, being African American, family history of pancreatic cancer, and chronic pancreatitis.

“Swayze’s public battle left a great contribution to society- pancreatic cancer awareness,” said Dr. Ravikumar. “Awareness often leads to early detection and better outcomes for all types of cancer.”

About Geisinger Health System
Founded in 1915, Geisinger Health System (Danville, PA) is one of the nation’s largest integrated health services organizations.  Serving more than two million residents throughout central and northeastern Pennsylvania, the physician-led organization is at the forefront of the country's rapidly emerging electronic health records movement. Geisinger is comprised of two medical center campuses, three hospitals, a 740-member group practice, a not-for-profit health insurance company and the Henry Hood Center for Health Research—dedicated to creating innovative new models for patient care, satisfaction and clinical outcomes. For more information, visit www.geisinger.org.