Guide To Understanding Pancreatic Cancer Stages

The pancreas is an organ in the upper abdomen that is responsible for the production and secretion of certain kinds of hormones and digestive enzymes. Pancreatic cancer that develops in the cells responsible for the digestive enzymes is called exocrine pancreatic cancer and includes adenocarcinomas, acinar cell carcinoma, ampullary cancer, adenosquamous carcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma, and giant cell carcinomas. Pancreatic cancer that develops in the cells responsible for hormones is called endocrine pancreatic cancer and includes insulinomas, glucagonomas, gastrinomas, somatostatinomas, and VIPomas. Blood, urine, and stool tests may be used to help make a pancreatic cancer diagnosis along with endoscopic ultrasound, CT scans, MRI scans, PET scans, x-rays, an angiogram, and a tissue biopsy. Once a pancreatic cancer diagnosis has been confirmed, the size, direct extent, degree of lymph node infiltration, and degree of distant organ involvement will be evaluated to determine the stage of cancer.

Get the details on the different stages of pancreatic cancer now.

Stage 0

Stage 0 pancreatic cancer and carcinoma in situ are terms used to describe abnormal cells contained within the pancreatic lining. These abnormal cells may also be referred to as precancerous cells by some physicians. The precancerous cells are strictly isolated to the surface layer cells of the pancreatic ducts. Most diagnostic imaging tests like x-ray, CT scans, MRI scans, and PET scans cannot detect stage 0 pancreatic cancer. During surgery, stage 0 pancreatic cancer is often unable to be seen and identified by the naked eye. The stage grouping used to refer to stage 0 pancreatic cancer in affected individuals is Tis, N0, and M0. These stages mean the cancer has not spread to any nearby lymph nodes or distant regions of the body. Stage 0 pancreatic cancer is often excluded from the pancreatic malignancy category and can only be detected during a microscopic biopsy of the pancreatic duct cells.

Learn about stage 1 pancreatic cancer next.