According to the American Cancer Society, about 2 out of 10 of people with pancreatic cancer live at least one year after their cancer is found and less than 4 percent will be alive after 5 years. In the pancreas, both the exocrine and endocrine cells can form tumors, however, tumors formed by the exocrine cells are much more common. These tumors frequently spread and are often aggressive when diagnosed, since symptoms do not appear until the cancer is very advanced. Pancreatic tumors are one of the most difficult forms of cancer to treat because of their resistance to radiation and chemotherapy. Doctors believe that chemotherapy is usually ineffective because pancreatic tumors have few blood vessels to transport the drug where it needs to go to kill the cancerous cells. However, researchers have recently found a way to use chemotherapy more effectively and double the survival time of mice with pancreatic cancer. For the study, scientists genetically engineered the mice to develop pancreatic cancer and then treated them with a chemotherapy drug in addition to a compound that boosts blood flow in the tumors. The average survival time of the treated mice doubled from 11 to 25 days, which would mean a significant increase for people with pancreatic cancer.
Although several pancreatic cancer treatments that were successful in mice failed in human trials, the scientists conducting this study believe they have found a way to have better success in humans. If this treatment was effective in people, it may be possible to double their survival time, which would mean adding months to the lives of many pancreatic cancer patients. One issue at hand would be the cost of the treatment, if it did eventually become available to people with pancreatic cancer. Some current chemotherapy drugs can cost thousands of dollars each month, making it extremely difficult for patients to afford treatment that could extend their lives. Still, much more research would be needed before any doctor would be able to offer this type of treatment to patients with this form of cancer. If you or a loved one has had a delay in diagnosing cancer and have questions about the quality of the medical care you received, please call or e-mail the cancer malpractice attorneys at Silberstein, Awad & Miklos, P.C. for answers. Together we will continue our fight against FRIVOLOUS and DECEPTIVE DEFENSES. We offer free consultations to clients with Manhattan cancer malpractice, Bronx cancer malpractice, Brooklyn cancer malpractice, Queens cancer malpractice and Long Island cancer malpractice cases.
Call us toll-free 1-877-ASK4SAM and visit www.ask4sam.net
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