What are some of the main troubling symptoms and their treatment?
A. Selected symptoms related to adenocarcinoma of the pancreas 1). Pain The fear of pain is the leading concern of most patients with advanced pancreatic cancer. Often a vague mid-abdominal pain is one of the first symptoms of pancreatic cancer. There is no fixed pattern, but often, over time, the pain of pancreatic cancer may move or radiate more through the abdomen to the back area. Inadequately treated pain can have profound negative effects on the psychosocial and even physical well-being of patients, and may subject patients to unnecessary anxiety and even depression. On the positive side, there have never been more options for good pain relief, and in the vast majority of patients excellent pain control can be maintained by cooperative efforts with the help of an enlightened health-care team. Since the publication of the World Health Organization’s suggested three-step analgesic “ladder” for pain control in 1986, pain is often classified as mild, moderate or severe. Mild pain is
