Pancreatic cancer, 45 surgeries in one year at Miulli in Acquaviva

Record year for pancreatic cancer operations at Miulli di Acquaviva: in 2022 there were 45 resections for pancreatic cancer, double the previous year. “Thanks to the use of the most modern technologies, such as robotic and laparoscopic surgery with which almost half of the operations were carried out – they explain from the hospital – the volume of patients treated for this pathology has continued to grow and has affected people not only from Puglia but also from outside the region. Similarly, people treated in the hospital for pancreatic cancer were over 400, a number that was once again on the increase compared to the previous year”.

In a new video, published on the Miulli website, Dr. Riccardo Memeo, director of the UOC of Hepatobiliary and Pancreatic Surgery at Miulli, explains the modus operandi of his team and the importance of using the most modern technologies for robotic and laparoscopic surgery. “If surgery has been chosen as a treatment in the course of care – they continue from the hospital – it is in fact a duty for the patient to inquire about how many cases of pancreatic surgery are carried out in the center in which they rely, knowing that currently a minimum of 25 operations per year for pancreatic cancer is required in order to be able to define a center as an ‘expert’ in pancreatic pathology”.

The fight against pancreatic cancer affects around 15,000 patients every year in Italy and remains a difficult enemy to fight. Diagnosis is often made too late and surgery can only be applied to less than 20% of patients. Currently, this neoplasm represents the fourth cause of death from cancer in Western countries and it is estimated that by 2030 it could become the second cause of death from cancer. Although important progress has been made in the treatment of this tumor in recent years, the results are still worrying, because only 10% of patients are still alive five years after diagnosis.

Thanks to progress in the field of research, the number of chemotherapies and its better administration allow for more treatment possibilities and thanks also to the progress of research it is possible to identify with genetic tests people who are more at risk of developing this type of tumor . Early diagnosis is very difficult because early symptoms are nonspecific and tend to occur when the disease is already present, with jaundice (biliary tract obstruction), persistent back pain, weight loss, and sudden onset of diabetes. Risk factors for the development of pancreatic neoplasms are smoking, diabetes, obesity and a sedentary life, as well as an important role of familiarity.