Is There A Link Between Pancreatic Cancer And Diabetes?

Pancreatic cancer and diabetes - The onset of diabetes or a rapid deterioration of existing diabetes can be an early sign of pancreatic cancer. This is shown by research from the International Prevention Research Institute (IPRI). These conclusions were recently presented at the European Cancer Congress.

The French researcher Alice Koechlin spoke at the Congress about the research in which data from almost one million patients from Italy (Lombardia) and Belgium with diabetes type 2 and all patients with pancreatic cancer are linked. Half of all pancreatic cancer diagnoses were made within one year after type 2 diabetes was diagnosed in patients.

In Belgium, 25 percent of pancreatic cancer patients were diagnosed within ninety days after diabetes type 2 was diagnosed. In Lombardy, this applied to 18 percent of patients. After the first year, the proportion of undiagnosed pancreatic cancer in patients with type 2 diabetes declined dramatically.



Incretins
Pancreatic cancer and diabetes - In comparison with diabetic patients who could do with oral medication, patients ran a 3.5-fold risk of diagnosing pancreatic cancer within three months after initiating treatment with incretins. Over the next three to six months, this risk fell to 2.3 and in the following six to 12 months to a twice as high risk. After the first year, the risk was 1.7 times as large.

Patients who already had type 2 diabetes and had this under control with oral diabetes medication, took the step to incretins or insulin earlier than in patients who later were diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. In a worsening of their condition, requiring them to switch to insulin injections, the diagnosis of pancreatic cancer was even seven times greater.

Incretin is not the cause
Pancreatic cancer and diabetes - According to Koechlin, incretin is often prescribed to patients whose diabetes is caused by a still undiagnosed pancreatic cancer. Because pancreatic cancer causes symptoms and is therefore diagnosed, it seems as if incretin causes pancreatic cancer. In reality, it is pancreatic cancer that causes the deterioration of diabetes, followed by the prescription of incretin.

Koechlin believes that doctors and diabetes patients should be aware that the onset of diabetes or a rapid deterioration of long-standing diabetes may be the first signal of hidden pancreatic cancer.

*Image source : Pixabay

References :

1. National Cancer Institute
2. Oncology.nl
3. American Cancer Society