Early Signs of Pancreatic Cancer: Symptoms & What to Do

Pancreatic cancer is often silent early. When symptoms appear, they may include:

• Unintentional weight loss (often first sign)
• Mid-epigastric/back pain (worse lying flat, better leaning forward)
• Jaundice (painless, with dark urine, pale stools, pruritus) — if head of pancreas
• New-onset diabetes (especially >50, normal weight)
• Nausea, vomiting, early satiety
• Fatigue, anorexia
• Steatorrhea (foul, floating stools) — malabsorption
• DVT (Trousseau's sign)
• Depression (paraneoplastic)

Risk factors: Smoking, obesity, chronic pancreatitis, family history, BRCA2, Lynch syndrome, age >60.

Action: Any persistent (>2 weeks) unexplained symptoms → see doctor. Early detection (stage I) enables curative surgery (Whipple). Most present at stage IV.