14th November 2022
Pancreatic cancer can grow quietly, which can make it difficult to identify the symptoms.
Sometimes a cancer in the pancreas pretends to be another type of problem and for other people they might have no symptoms at all. This can lead to pancreatic cancer being diagnosed late, which is why it’s important to be aware of the signs and symptoms and know what to look out for.
Signs to watch out for:
- Constantly feeling tired without a particular reason.
- Feeling down without a good reason.
- A reduced appetite. You don’t feel hungry anymore and don’t know why.
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Feeling as if your blood sugars are too high or too low even though you haven’t changed your diet.
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Losing weight without trying.
Symptoms
Upset stomach
- Feeling full even though you have eaten a smaller amount than normal.
- Feeling bloated and full of wind. Passing wind either up or down, more than normal.
Indigestion
- Indigestion or heart burn that isn’t going away in spite of taking the right medicine for it.
Change in bowel
- Poo that is much paler than usual
- Extra smelly poo
- Poo that is really hard to flush away
- Having diarrhoea or being really constipated for at least a week or more without having changed your diet
Pain
- Pain in the middle of your back (across the area where a bra would normally be fastened)
- Pain across the front of our stomach.
- Pain in your side.
Jaundice
- Itching
- You look as if you have a tan without being in the sun
- The whites of your eyes look yellow
Remember that these symptoms could have more common causes, but if you have any of these symptoms and you don’t know why you have them, go to your GP or speak to a healthcare professional.
You can watch the video below from Alex McAfee, our specialist nurse for liver and pancreas for more on the signs and symptoms of pancreatic cancer.