This component of the OU ~ Southwest Program for Pancreatic Cancer has as its first goal provision of an organizational resource for members of the pancreatic cancer community in Oklahoma and the surrounding Southwest Region. The pancreatic cancer community includes patients, family, and friends, as well as anyone interested in supporting this group affected by pancreatic cancer. The organization of this community will be the first step in the establishment of groups characterized by high risk(s) for pancreatic cancer. Information based on a particular risk factor can then be provided resulting in heightened awareness regarding preventive options and educational tools focused on the relationship of the risk to pancreatic cancer. High risk groups include:

family history

smoking

long standing diabetes

chronic pancreatitis

aging.

Pancreatic cancer is also associated with heavy use of alcohol and obesity. These factors singularly and in combination have a strong influence on pancreatic cancer risk. Identification of risk coupled with information regarding symptoms may lead to earlier detection and therefore increased effectiveness of treatment and broader treatment options. These options include choice of the most appropriate health care provider.

The mortality rate for pancreatic cancer is the highest of all cancers. Pancreatic cancer has become the fourth leading killer of all cancers with 30,300 deaths each year and approximately the same number of new cases each year. The major reason for this dismal prognosis is that symptoms related to the disease do not become apparent until late stages of development and even when recognized early, the symptoms may be misleading due to similarity to symptoms of other less life-threatening diseases. Increased awareness by the community, as well as family care physicians in our region, through education provided by this program, may result in earlier initiation of treatment strategies and significant improvement of chances for recovery. Community and physician awareness of patient family history and other risk factors are essential in early association of symptoms with pancreatic cancer. These elements make the immediate establishment of this portion of the program a high priority.

This section of the Web Page will be used to track our regional information gathering process with the intention of identifying high-risk groups and determining the existence of potential geographic relationships with pancreatic cancer. The generation of this database will permit provision of information specifically designed for these selected groups.