Current standards in the treatment of pancreatic cancer

Abstract

The poor prognosis of pancreatic adenocarcinoma on the one hand side is due to the fact that early symptoms are nonspecific, often misdiagnosed and the disease is on the other hand side rapidly progressive, so that at diagnosis in about 80 % of cases already locally advanced inoperable, or metastatic cancer stages are present. In these cases the 1 year survival rate ranged from 20 % to 50 % depending of performance status and the used regimen. Thus, symptomatic supportive treatment is as important as palliative chemotherapy. Today several evidence-based chemotherapies are available - and others are expected soon - resulting in a highly significant overall survival benefit. Individual patient characteristics have to be considered for the selection of treatment. Even after successful surgery with curative intention, the 5-year survival rate is about 10 %. By adjuvant chemotherapy the survival probability as well as cure rate can be more than doubled. Since the preparation of the S3 guidelines for pancreatic cancer additional options in the care of patients with pancreatic cancer have become available to be incorporated in clinical practice.