Radiation Oncology Centers in Los Angeles, CA
A cancer diagnosis is one of life’s most challenging experiences – and if you or someone you love is facing cancer, you deserve a treatment team of dedicated experts by your side. At Pasadena CyberKnife, we’ve helped countless patients throughout the greater Los Angeles area beat cancer through world-class treatments, and we can often use noninvasive methods like CyberKnife to treat cancer. We’re proud to treat almost any cancerous condition – including pancreatic cancer.
About Pancreatic Cancer
Pancreatic cancer refers to any cancerous growth that forms in the pancreas: a fish-shaped organ located just below the stomach that aids in the digestive process and produces hormones. Pancreatic cancer accounts for roughly 3% of all cancer cases in the US and 7% of all deaths, affecting roughly 53,000 people each year and claiming 43,000 lives.
Unfortunately, pancreatic cancer is one of the more severe forms of cancer – so prompt treatment is critical. Even so, with an expert team of cancer doctors and radiation oncologists, pancreatic cancer can often be treatable. At Pasadena CyberKnife, we offer a variety of treatment methods including chemotherapy, targeted therapy, immunotherapy, surgery, and noninvasive CyberKnife, any of which may be appropriate for pancreatic cancer.
What Causes Pancreatic Cancer?
Like many cancerous conditions, scientists aren’t sure exactly what causes pancreatic cancer. However, research has identified a number of risk factors: variables that may increase your risk of developing pancreatic cancer. Having one or more of these risk factors doesn’t guarantee that you will or will not develop pancreatic cancer, but they provide insight into the likelihood of any one patient developing pancreatic cancer in their lifetime.
Risk factors for pancreatic cancer include:
- Tobacco: Smoking is the largest risk factor for pancreatic cancer, and the risk for pancreatic cancer is twice as high for smokers as for non-smokers.
- Obesity & Being Overweight: Obesity increases the likelihood of pancreatic cancer by 20%, and even people who are only moderately overweight may have an increased risk.
- Chemicals: Exposure to certain chemicals used in dry cleaning and metalworking may increase the risk of pancreatic cancer.
- Age: Risk of pancreatic cancer increases with age, with about two-thirds of patients over 65.
- Gender: Men are moderately more likely to develop pancreatic cancer than women, but it’s unclear why this is. This difference may purely be due to the higher prevalence of tobacco use in men.
- Family History: Patients with a family history of pancreatic cancer may be more likely to develop it in their lifetimes.
Contact Your Los Angeles Cancer Doctors
Risk factors don’t necessarily determine whether any one individual will or will not develop pancreatic cancer – but, when discussed with your doctor, they can help you determine your own likelihood and take steps for early detection and prevention. If you or a loved one are diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, however, we can help. As a leading cancer treatment center in Los Angeles, we work with countless pancreatic cancer patients, and thanks to the cutting-edge technology at our center, we can often treat even advanced cases. You deserve the best in your cancer care, so don’t wait: contact us today to schedule a consultation. We’ll work with you to develop a treatment plan that fits your lifestyle and start towards recovery.