Deborah James discusses 'scary' bowel cancer symptoms
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Symptoms of cancer are extensive and ill-defined, which can complicate referral procedures for healthcare providers. Naturally, symptoms vary widely from cancer to cancer, but some signs overlap different forms. Pancreatic cancer, which has continuously been counted among the least survivable, is strongly associated with jaundice and stomach pain. In a recent study, researchers have linked two new symptoms to the disease, one of which can be spotted when going to the toilet.
The findings, released by the National Cancer Research Institute in 2021, confirmed a total of 21 symptoms of pancreatic cancer which were shown to appear up to a year before the disease was diagnosed.
The disease occurs when malignant cells proliferate inside the pancreas, the organ that produces digestive fluids.
Cancer Research UK states that only 25 percent of pancreatic cancer patients survive the condition for one or more years after they are diagnosed.
After five years, more than five percent survive the disease, giving it the lowest survival rate of all common cancers.
READ MORE: Cancer: Food consumed by millions every day in the UK linked to a 30% increased risk
In 2021, researchers at the University of Oxford analysed data from more than 24,236 pancreatic cancer patients, to compare and contrast their symptoms.
The timing of symptoms was also examined to help determine which offered the earliest indication of ill health.
The two most serious symptoms identified were yellowing of the skin and bleeding in the stomach or intestine.
In addition, the researchers identified thirst and dark urine as previously unknown symptoms, according to Science Daily.
Other symptoms found were bleeding in the stomach or intestine, problems swallowing, diarrhoea, change in bowel habits, vomiting, indigestion, abdominal mass, abdominal pain, weight loss, constipation, fat in stock, abdominal mass, abdominal pain, weight loss, constipation, nausea, flatulence, heartburn, fever, tiredness, appetite loss, itching, back pain and thirst.
All these symptoms were associated with the most common type of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC).
Researchers found patients diagnosed with the disease had a higher chance of experiencing the non-specific symptoms one year prior to diagnosis.
Doctor Weiqi Liao, a data scientist from the University of Oxford, said: “When pancreatic cancer is diagnosed earlier, patients have a higher chance of survival.
“It is possible to diagnose when they visit their GP, but both patients and GPs need to be aware of the symptoms associated with pancreatic cancer.”
He continued: “These new findings enable us to conduct further work on understanding symptoms that could suggest pancreas cancer.
“This will help GPs may deficient about whom to refer for urgent tests, especially when patients have several seemingly non-specific symptoms.”
One shortcoming of the study was that the oldest data included did not offer any indication of the stage at which the cancer was diagnosed.
This means researchers were unable to determine which symptoms were associated with associated early-stage disease and late-stage disease.
What’s more, as certain forms of pancreatic cancer – such as pancreatic neuroendocrine neoplasms (PNEN) – are rarer, only a small amount of data was available for the disease.
This made it harder for researchers to detect other potential symptoms.
However, further research is being undertaken to compare the findings with symptoms data from other groups of patients.
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