Pancreatic Cancer Group: Introduce yourself and connect with others

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@gamaryanne thank you for sharing, I am open to any and all suggestions. It seems that texture is a huge issue for him currently. Things he previously loved, mashed potatoes, are a total turn off and he gags. I am trying to come up with high calorie foods so he can gain some of the 22 pounds he has lost (bowel obstruction surgery after first chemo) he has lost. I am sending you healing thoughts and am very grateful for your input. Thank you

Hello from Chula Vista, California,

I was diagnosed with PDAC 3 weeks ago (3/6/26) during a hospital stay. They haven't staged it, but as far as treatment goes, my 3cm undifferentiated malignancy is "borderline resectable." Plan is to do 6-8 rounds of mFOLFIRINOX, then try to resect, then more chemo. All new to me, and I'm trying to keep my head above water. I recently moved from Maryland to SoCal after a fall Semester at Sea, turned 67 on December 30th, retired January 1st, started Medicare on Feb 1st, and started having GI symptoms on Feb 10th. My chest port will go in this Friday, April 3rd, and I've asked my brother to pre-emptively shave my head this weekend. A new voyage underway, for sure.

Grateful for this community as I get started with both treatment and retirement. Thanks for taking me in when I'm not a Mayo patient, but need community. I'll be reading all your questions and comments!
Warm regards,
Mary D

@donomary wish you good luck with treatment .. I hope all goes to plan .. don’t shave of all your hair as some people don’t lose it all xx

@donomary
Hi Mary, congrats on your retirement and well wishes with your health. I was diagnosed with locally advanced PC 3 months ago. I'm 69 and have had 4 folfirinox treatments so far, no hair loss and manageable side affects. They will do another scan soon and reevaluate surgery. No stage was given to me. I've been able to stabilize weight after losing 15 #s. My energy is better. Hope and faith get me thru.
Take care, Maria F.

@castell What does the creon do to help with not able to eat much. I am concerned with not getting enough nutrition when it is so hard to eat.

@beckykuh

I’ve been on Creon for ten years. After my whipple I was prescribed to take three capsules of 24,000 lipase units per meal (doctor basing this on my weight). Most of the time I took only one capsule per meal and I was generally OK.

Now I take more creon and I also take psyllium. This works for me.

For me I could barely eat anything right after the surgery. But I started eating small amounts of anything that appealed to me. Over time this expanded. For me, high fat items were problematic. But this still leaves a lot of choices.

Time is a great healer. Your situation will improve.

A tip from a professor— take Creon with the second bite, not the first.

Hello All,
After having a CT scan in December 2025, the radiologist found a tumor on my pancreas. Two endoscopies and one MRI later I was told on 3/26/2026 that I have Stage 2 PC. I will begin 8 rounds of chemotherapy starting 4/13/2026 then Resective surgery followed by more chemo. I remain prayerful about my situation and know that its one step at a time. I’m not a Mayo patient, but look forward to reading your comments and sharing with this community.

My name is Glenn and I was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer last month. There is a growth approximately 2 cm where the pancreas meets the bile duct.

Would this be early pancreatic cancer?
Would I need to surgically remove the pancreas?
How long before I would be getting surgery?

Many thanks!