Pancreatic Cancer

Overview

Pancreatic cancer is the fifth leading cause of cancer death in the US with an annual incidence of 12.3/100,000.  Many cases are asymptomatic, but symptoms can include abdominal or back pain, weight loss, nausea, vomiting, painless jaundice, fatigue and depression.  Physical findings include abdominal mass, jaundice and ascites. Paraneoplastic syndromes can occur.  Diagnostic techniques include ERCP, laparoscopy, needle biopsy, or ascetic fluid cytology.  A CA 19-9 level is obtained as a baseline and followed for response or recurrence.  Staging involves CT and PET.

Treatment Options

Treatment options include surgery, adjuvant chemotherapy, chemoradiation, or chemotherapy alone for metastatic disease.  Chemotherapy agents include 5-FU, oxaliplatin, iriniotecan, gemzar, abraxane, and tarceva.

Pancreatic Cancer Specialists

Dr. Raymond Tsao

Dr. Raymond Tsao completed his fellowship in Hematology & Medical Oncology at The Cleveland Clinic in Ohio.

He is board certified in Medical Oncology, Hematology, and Internal Medicine.

Dr. Tsao is currently seeing patients with all types of cancer, with a focus on Gastrointestinal Malignancies (including esophageal, stomach, colorectal, and pancreatic cancer). Click here to learn more about Dr. Raymond Tsao.

Dina Giovanetti

Dina Giovanetti received her BSN in 1994 and her MSN in 2002 from Florida Atlantic University. She is Board Certified as a Family Nurse Practitioner and has practiced in Internal Medicine and Emergency Medicine for most of her career before joining Cancer Center of South Florida and practicing Oncology. Click here to learn more about Dina Giovanetti.