Pancreatic cancer is one of the most deadly types of cancer.
It often goes unnoticed until it reaches a very serious stage, making it difficult to treat.
One specific kind of pancreatic cancer, called pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC), makes up more than 90% of all pancreatic cancer cases.
Sadly, this cancer is usually only found when it is too late for treatment to work well.
But scientists at Boston Medical Center may have found an early clue that could help.
In a recent study, they discovered that people with gallstones—a much more common and less dangerous health issue—might have a higher risk of being diagnosed with PDAC.
Gallstones are small, hard lumps that can form in the gallbladder. The gallbladder is a small organ under the liver that stores a fluid called bile, which helps the body digest fat. Gallstones are made when the balance of substances in bile gets thrown off.
Some gallstones are tiny, like grains of sand, while others can be as big as a golf ball.
Many people don’t even know they have gallstones because they often don’t cause symptoms. However, in some cases, gallstones can lead to stomach pain, nausea, and other digestive problems.
In the new study, scientists looked at the medical records of more than 18,000 people who had PDAC. They also looked at the records of nearly 100,000 people who did not have cancer. What they found was surprising.
In the year before they were diagnosed with PDAC, about 4.7% of the cancer patients had gallstones. Also, 1.6% of them had their gallbladders removed through surgery. In the group without cancer, only 0.8% had gallstones, and just 0.3% had gallbladder surgery.
This means that people with PDAC were about six times more likely to have had gallstones in the year before their diagnosis. The results were shared at a major medical conference in 2022 called Digestive Disease Week.
The researchers don’t think that gallstones actually cause pancreatic cancer. Instead, they believe gallstones could be an early warning sign. If doctors notice gallstones in someone who also has other signs of illness, they might be able to find pancreatic cancer earlier. And when it comes to this disease, early detection can be life-saving.
It’s also important to remember that gallstones are very common, especially in people over the age of 40, women, and people who are overweight. Most people who have gallstones will never get pancreatic cancer. But for a small number of people, gallstones might be a signal that something more serious is happening in the body.
The scientists want to keep studying this link to better understand it. They hope to discover certain patterns in lab results or scans that could help doctors figure out who is at higher risk for pancreatic cancer. That way, doctors can take a closer look at people who have gallstones and other warning signs.
This research adds to the idea that common health issues, like gallstones, might sometimes point to more dangerous diseases. It shows why it’s important to pay attention to changes in your health—even small ones. These changes could be early clues that something more serious needs attention.
One day, thanks to studies like this, doctors might be able to detect deadly cancers like PDAC earlier, giving patients a better chance to survive. More research is still needed, but this is a step forward and offers new hope.
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