Pancreatic cancer is one of the deadliest cancers because it often grows silently.
Many people do not notice any symptoms until the disease has already spread, making it much harder to treat. This is why scientists around the world are searching for ways to detect the disease much earlier.
Researchers from Boston Medical Center have now found an interesting clue. Their study suggests that people who are diagnosed with gallstone disease may have a higher chance of being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer soon afterwards. The finding does not prove that gallstones cause cancer, but it could help doctors know when extra testing may be useful.
The pancreas is an organ located behind the stomach. It helps the body digest food by making digestive enzymes and also produces hormones such as insulin to control blood sugar. When cancer develops in the pancreas, these important jobs can be affected.
The most common form of pancreatic cancer is called pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma, or PDAC. It makes up more than 90 percent of all pancreatic cancer cases. Early symptoms are often vague or absent, while later symptoms may include stomach pain, weight loss, yellowing of the skin and eyes, and poor appetite.
The researchers wanted to find out whether gallstone disease could be linked to pancreatic cancer. Gallstones are hard pieces of material that form in the gallbladder, a small organ beneath the liver that stores bile to help digest fats. Many people have gallstones without ever knowing because they often cause no symptoms.
When gallstones block the flow of bile, they can cause severe pain, nausea, vomiting, and digestive problems. Some people need surgery to remove the gallbladder, which is a common and generally safe operation.
For the study, the researchers examined medical records from 18,700 people with PDAC and compared them with almost 100,000 people who did not have pancreatic cancer. They looked for differences in their medical histories during the year before the cancer diagnosis.
The results showed that 4.7 percent of people with pancreatic cancer had been diagnosed with gallstone disease during the previous year. About 1.6 percent had also undergone gallbladder removal surgery. In comparison, only 0.8 percent of people without pancreatic cancer had gallstones and only 0.3 percent had their gallbladder removed.
After comparing the numbers, the researchers found that people with pancreatic cancer were around six times more likely to have recently had gallstone disease. This does not mean gallstones lead to cancer. Instead, the scientists believe that an early tumour may affect the normal flow of bile, making gallstones more likely to develop.
If future studies confirm this idea, doctors could use a recent diagnosis of gallstones as one clue that further testing may be needed in some patients. Detecting pancreatic cancer before it spreads could greatly improve the chances of successful treatment.
The researchers also stress that most people with gallstones will never develop pancreatic cancer. Gallstones are common, especially in older adults, women, people living with obesity, and those with certain health conditions. In most cases, they can be treated successfully without serious long-term problems.
The team plans to continue studying this link to identify which gallstone patients may have the highest risk. They hope that medical scans, blood tests, and other health information will eventually help doctors recognise pancreatic cancer much earlier.
The research was presented at the 2022 Digestive Disease Week conference, one of the world’s largest meetings on digestive health.
More research is needed, but the findings offer a promising new path towards earlier diagnosis of one of the world’s most difficult cancers to detect.
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