COMPREHENSIVE MEDICAL CARE AND RESEARCH IN ONCOLOGICAL THERAPY

Pancreatic cancer is a type of cancer that originates in the pancreas. Cancer starts when cells in the body begin to grow out of control.

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Exocrine cancers are by far the most common type of pancreatic cancer. If you are told you have pancreatic cancer, it is more likely to be exocrine pancreatic cancer.

Pancreatic adenocarcinoma: Approximately 95% of exocrine pancreatic cancers are adenocarcinomas. 

 

These cancers usually start in the ducts of the pancreas. Less commonly, they are formed from the cells that make pancreatic enzymes. In this case they are called acinar cell carcinomas.

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Less common types of exocrine cancer: Other less common types of exocrine pancreatic cancer include adenosquamous carcinomas, squamous cell carcinomas, signet ring cell carcinomas, undifferentiated carcinomas, and undifferentiated giant cell carcinomas.

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Ampullary cancer (carcinoma of the ampulla of Vater): This cancer originates in the ampulla of Vater, the place where the bile duct and pancreatic duct join and open into the small intestine. Ampullary cancers are not technically pancreatic cancers, but they are included in this information because they are treated in very similar ways.

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Ampullary cancers often block the bile duct when they are still small and have not spread widely. This blockage causes bile to build up in the body, causing the skin and eyes to turn yellow (jaundice). For this reason, these cancers are usually detected earlier than most pancreatic cancers, and the prognosis is usually better.

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