Generally if the cancer is localized, surgical treatment, by resection or removal of the tumor, can be pursued. This means that the cancer has not spread to any blood vessels, distant lymph nodes or other organs, such as the liver or lung.
http://pathology.jhu.edu/pc/TreatmentSurgery.php?area=tr
Pancreatic Cancer: Diagnosis. Approved by the Cancer.Net Editorial Board, 12/2015. ON THIS PAGE: You will find a list of the common tests, procedures, and scans that doctors can use to find out what’s wrong and identify the cause of the problem. To see other pages, use the menu on the side of your screen.
http://www.cancer.net/cancer-types/pancreatic-cancer/diagnosis
Tumors that grow in the body and tail of the pancreas are removed through a surgery known as a distal pancreatectomy. Johns Hopkins performs more pancreas cancer surgeries than any other institution in the country. Each year, our surgeons perform more than 250 Whipple procedures and 100 distal pancreatectomies.
http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/kimmel_cancer_center/centers/pancreatic_cancer/treatments/whipple_procedure.html
Surgery can be performed as a potentially curative measure if the cancer is contained within the pancreas and has not spread to blood vessels, lymph nodes or other organs. This treatment option should be discussed with your physician to see if it is a viable option.
http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/kimmel_cancer_center/centers/pancreatic_cancer/treatments/whipple_procedure.html
Imaging tests help doctors find out where the cancer is located and whether it has spread from the pancreas to other parts of the body. Pancreatic cancer often does not develop as a single large tumor, which means it can sometimes be difficult to see on imaging tests.
http://www.cancer.net/cancer-types/pancreatic-cancer/diagnosis
Pancreatic Cancer: Diagnosis. ON THIS PAGE: You will find a list of the common tests, procedures, and scans that doctors can use to find out what’s wrong and identify the cause of the problem. To see other pages, use the menu on the side of your screen.
http://www.cancer.net/cancer-types/pancreatic-cancer/diagnosis
By the time a patient is diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, the disease is often already in an advanced stage. For this reason, a large majority of patients are not candidates for surgical treatment. We are making advances in understanding the early stages of this disease that, in time, will help us to detect more pancreatic cancers while they are still operable. Click here for more information about our early detection lab.
http://pathology.jhu.edu/pc/TreatmentSurgery.php?area=tr
Generally, if the cancer is found in distant lymph nodes, other organs or blood vessels, surgical resection will not be pursued. If this is the case, the doctors and/or nurses will discuss possible medical treatments and/or palliative procedures.
http://pathology.jhu.edu/pc/TreatmentSurgery.php?area=tr
This procedure is the least common of all of the surgeries performed for pancreas cancer and is used when tumors extend throughout the pancreas. In a total pancreatectomy, surgeons remove the entire pancreas and the spleen, gallbladder, common bile duct, and portions of the small intestine and stomach.
http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/kimmel_cancer_center/centers/pancreatic_cancer/treatments/whipple_procedure.html
Double By-pass- A palliative surgical procedure to alleviate jaundice, nausea and vomiting for patients with advanced tumors in the head of the pancreas. The double bypass involves a bypass to the bile duct and a bypass to the stomach. Often a celiac nerve block is also performed.
http://pathology.jhu.edu/pc/TreatmentSurgery.php?area=tr
what procedure confirms pancreatic cancer
A palliative surgical procedure confirms pancreatic cancer.