@joiedevivre , something to ask the surgeon about...

I don't know if there's any evidence of metastasis in your husband's case, but even if there are a few/small ones, you might want to ask if total pancreatectomy is worthwhile (soon) in his case.

My case was similar, but in the time after initial recurrence at the surgical bed, mets developed before I even got back on chemo.

The bad part for me was how tight that intersection of the anatomy (stomach - pancreas - jejunum) is after Whipple. It created a situation where radiation was not recommended because of the risk to other structures/organs/tissue, and surgery was ruled out because of the spread.

Over time, the recurrence grew from the surgical bed into a complete blockage of my stomach outlet, which took radiation, chemo, and two surgical attempts to reopen with a stent.

I think earlier removal of the entire pancreas would have prevented this blockage, regardless of the mets. (I think removal of the entire pancreas at first PC diagnosis would have avoided the recurrence altogether, but that's water under the bridge...)

I would push for entire tumors to be removed asap if they're in a spot where they could cause blockages or other serious complications, and let chemo attack the various stragglers in non-critical locations later.