Pancreatic Cancer Group: Introduce yourself and connect with others

Hello,
My husband, 65, was diagnosed with stage 1 -2 pancreatic cancer May '22. He has since completed chemo, raditiation and the Appleby procedure here at MDAnderson in Houston. He will now be under surveillance since pathology was favorable. He has done fairly well but has a lack of appetite. Difficult to get enough hydration bc he is sleeping most of the day. Any suggestions would be appreciated. And has anyone else had this procedure and what were outcomes?

Thank you for sharing your story. My Mom is 95, still doing for herself. It's a blessing to have a parent who lives well into their 90's. My friend, age 90 developed advanced pancreatic cancer. She was living independently, engaged in life. She did not have any treatment other than a stent. She passed away very peacefully 3 months after diagnosis surrounded by her three children. It was good for her that she did not suffer any pain. Treatment can be tough. I think she and her family made a wise choice.

My husband has pancreatic cancer and started chemo infusions this past week. I just want to glean info about whatever I can learn.

Thank you for answering. It is good to get the stories of others like my mom to be able to have realistic expectations. I agree chemo is not for her. Blessings!

I was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in the tail in London about 10 days ago.

I am undergoing surgery on Tuesday to have partial pancrectony , and removal of spleen. Being done by robotic surgery.

Not sure what lies ahead ; does anyone have similar experiences

My husband was diagnosed with lesion in tail of pancreas and began 6 rounds of chemo to shrink tumor. It did shrink. Then at the end of October, he had about half of pancreas robotically removed, along with spleen and 29 lymph nodes around the pancreas. After a short recuperation from surgery, he had 6 more treatments. He was just scanned last week and they found no evidence of cancer. He will be scanned every 3 months for a year. He is doing well, lost no weight, did not lose his hair. He did develop neuropathy in fingers, feet and legs. We opted to do the 6 chemo treatments before surgery and then the 2nd 6 treatments after surgery, as a 2nd doctor told us that was the prevailing opinion for treatment. All the best to you on Tuesday.

Thank you so much. Pleased your hubby doing well.
Do you know what size his tumour was when initially found. ? How was it discovered - what symptoms did he have ?

Really appreciate your good wishes and blessings to us all

I am the husband. No symptoms at all. Was found incidentally on a CAT scan for something else. 4cm tumor. Standard of care here is 6 chemos, operation, then 6 more chemos. The chemo main drug was 5 FU. Wishing you the very best.

I simply want to thank you for posting this support group. I want to say Sally is a member but I will definitely make sure. I know reading the articles has really reinforced my feelings.

Hello! I already created a thread for my situation, but thought I'd post an intro here too. I was formally diagnosed on 3/30/23 with locally advanced pancreatic cancer. We found it by accident. Genetic testing after a DCIS (breast cancer) diagnosis in November determined that I have the ATM gene mutation. We decided to do a baseline screening for pancreatic, and the CA 19-9 number came back elevated (1789). That set off a whirlwind of appointments and scans that have verified the diagnosis. I'm told the cancer is toward the head and appears to be contained to the pancreas, but has wrapped around some blood vessels, making it inoperable. I will have a laparoscopy this Thursday 4/6, and the surgeon will install a chemo port as well. I meet with the med onc on Monday 4/10. Like you all, I'm researching, noting questions, making lists--hoping for the best but realizing this may be the worst. The diagnosis has been shocking. I have very few symptoms, all of which could be explained away easily by other things, so we didn't suspect a thing. In the space of three weeks, I've gone from healthy and busy at work and home to surrendering my job, quitting my grad school program, and having to stop tutoring. We're trying to stay positive, but it's challenging. Thank you to Mayo for this board, which looks like it'll be a stupendous resource, and thanks to all of you for sharing your stories, research and insights. I look forward to learning from you!