Condition · 3 treatment paths
Pancreatic Cancer
Pancreatic cancer is a cancer of the pancreas that is often found late because early symptoms are vague. It most often affects people over 60.
Send your imaging + plan. Board-reviewed opinion in 5–10 working days.
- Treatment paths
- 3Treatment paths
- Specialties
- 1Specialties
- Typical severity
- SevereTypical severity
About pancreatic cancer
What to know
Symptoms include yellowing of the skin and eyes, dark urine, pale stools, upper abdominal or back pain, weight loss and new diabetes. Diagnosis uses CT, MRI and endoscopic ultrasound with biopsy, and staging decides whether the tumour can be removed. Outlook is often poor because the disease is advanced at diagnosis.
Surgery offers the only chance of cure and is possible only for a minority, using the Whipple procedure for tumours in the head of the pancreas. Chemotherapy is given before or after surgery, or as the main treatment when the tumour cannot be removed. Radiotherapy may be used in selected cases, and stents and pain control relieve symptoms. Patients may travel abroad to high-volume pancreatic surgery centres.
Pre-flight workup
Tests to have already done
- Biopsy or cytology report confirming the diagnosis, and CT or MRI of the pancreas with a pancreatic protocol.
- Staging scans of the chest and abdomen, and sometimes PET-CT or endoscopic ultrasound.
- CA 19-9 blood levels, and liver, kidney and nutritional blood tests.
- Details of jaundice, stents or drainage procedures, weight loss and diabetes.
- Genetic and tumour molecular results, such as BRCA, if available.
Second opinion
When to get a second look
- You have been told the tumour cannot be removed and want to confirm whether it is borderline resectable.
- Surgery is recommended and you want it done at a high-volume pancreatic centre.
- Chemotherapy before surgery is suggested and you want to understand why.
- Genetic testing has not been done, which might change treatment.
Talking to your doctor
Questions to ask
- Can my tumour be removed, and how was that decided?
- What are the chemotherapy options and their goals?
- Would chemotherapy before surgery help in my case?
- How will pain, jaundice, weight loss and digestion be managed?
- Should I have genetic testing, and are relatives at risk?
- What are the realistic aims of treatment?
Outlook
Realistic prognosis
Pancreatic cancer has a difficult outlook because it is often advanced at diagnosis. Surgery, combined with chemotherapy, offers the only chance of long-term survival, but only a minority are suitable and recurrence is common. For unresectable disease, chemotherapy extends life and controls symptoms. Outcome depends on stage, fitness and response to treatment, and supportive care is important throughout.
01 · Specialties
Specialties that treat Pancreatic
Diagnostic workup
Before you pick a hospital, get the workup right
Picking the right treatment is downstream of a complete diagnosis. Skip steps here and the destination surgeon usually re-orders them anyway — at higher cost and another week on the ground.
- Confirm the diagnosis on imaging or labs
For pancreatic cancer, plan on the workup your home doctor would order anyway — typically a recent specialist consult plus the imaging / labs the destination team will need to quote accurately. Anything older than 90 days usually gets re-done.
- See a oncology specialist locally first
An in-person clinical exam at home — even a single consult — costs little and dramatically improves the destination plan. Bring back: written impression, recommended procedure, surgical-risk class, and any contra-indications.
- Send us the file for a free second opinion
Two surgeons in our medical panel review the workup independently. They tell you whether they'd operate, watch, or refer — even if that means recommending against travel.
- Pick a path with timeline + cost in writing
Once a treatment is the right call, we line up 2–3 hospital options with itemized quotes, surgeon profiles, and a travel timeline. You hold the file — switch hospitals or step away at any point.
Where to be treated
Pancreatic Cancer treatment by destination
04 · FAQ
Common questions about pancreatic cancer
Can pancreatic cancer be cured?
Cure is possible mainly when the tumour is small enough to be removed with surgery plus chemotherapy, though it can still return. Most cases are treated to control the disease.
What is the Whipple operation?
A major operation that removes the head of the pancreas, part of the bowel, bile duct and sometimes stomach, then reconnects the digestive tract. It is best done at high-volume centres.
How is jaundice treated?
A small tube (stent) can be placed in the bile duct by endoscopy to drain bile, relieving itching and jaundice and allowing chemotherapy to start.
Will I need enzyme tablets?
Often, since the pancreas may no longer release enough digestive enzymes. Replacement capsules with meals help digestion and weight.
Clinical context
Working up pancreatic cancer properly
A condition like pancreatic cancer is rarely well-served by jumping straight to treatment shopping. The sequence below is what a oncology specialist would expect to see completed — and the absence of any step is the right cue to delay travel decisions.
Diagnostic workup, in sequence
- First-line clinical assessment
History, physical exam, and risk-factor review by a senior generalist or oncology specialist. Symptoms list, family history, prior workup notes, and current medication list should travel with the patient.
- Standard imaging + labs
Baseline blood work, condition-specific imaging (ultrasound / X-ray / MRI / CT — depending on indication), and ECG / pulmonary function as relevant. Bring digital copies of any prior imaging — saves repeat scans and the cost that goes with them.
- Specialist diagnostic workup
Procedure-specific tests — biopsy, cardiac catheterisation, endoscopy, or genetic / molecular profiling depending on the suspected diagnosis. Done at the centre that will treat, ideally, so results integrate cleanly into the treatment plan.
- Multidisciplinary review (where indicated)
Cancer, complex cardiac, transplant, and rare-disease cases should be reviewed by a multidisciplinary panel — surgical, medical, imaging, and pathology — before any treatment commits. Single-discipline plans for complex disease are a quality red flag.
When to escalate urgently
- Acute worsening of established symptoms — sudden chest pain, shortness of breath at rest, neurological deficit, severe bleeding, persistent high fever.
- Loss of consciousness, severe persistent vomiting, or any focal neurological event.
- Symptoms in the early hours of onset that fit a time-sensitive treatment window (stroke, MI, sepsis) — every hour costs outcome.
- If you are travelling internationally for treatment and develop these symptoms in transit, divert to the nearest emergency department; do not wait to reach the planned destination.
Before you book international travel
- Confirm your specific diagnosis is fully worked up before you commit to a treatment plan abroad. Travelling for the workup is fine; travelling for treatment without the workup done is not.
- Get your case reviewed remotely by the destination centre's team before you book flights — credible international patient programs review imaging + reports before they confirm the surgical plan.
- Bring a digital + physical copy of your full medical record: imaging on USB drive in DICOM format, labs in PDF, current medication list with dosages, allergies, and any prior surgical reports.
- Plan for longer recovery + post-discharge therapy continuation before you fly — the surgery itself is rarely the bottleneck.
- Confirm that follow-up imaging and any necessary in-person reviews can be done at home — a treatment plan that requires repeat international trips is more burdensome (and more expensive) than the headline procedure.
Methodology and editorial standards
This pancreatic cancer overview is written by the editorial team from published Oncology sources and lists 3 treatment options offered by hospitals on our network. The page shows its last-updated date. Clinical descriptions are editorial — your treating clinician confirms what's right for your specific case.
- Hospital data. Hospital details are compiled from public sources and hospital websites. Accreditation (JCI, NABH and others) is shown where we hold a record of it. Always ask the hospital for its current certificate.
- Doctor credentials. Qualifications, specialty and bio come from the doctor's hospital profile. Licence is checked against the national medical-council register only where the profile shows a "Licence verified" badge with a date.
- Prices. Price ranges are indicative, compiled from hospital price lists and packages and shown with the date last updated. The hospital's written quote is what you pay against.
- Clinical text. Written by the Medcasts editorial team from published clinical sources. Unless a named reviewer is shown on the page, it has not been reviewed by a doctor.
- Independence. Hospitals cannot pay to change their position on our pages.
Pancreatic Cancer
Continue evaluating pancreatic cancer care
Condition overview is one entry. These hubs route the same care decision via specialty, surgeon, treatment, and destination — including the doctors actively treating pancreatic cancer.
- Surgeons Doctors treating Pancreatic Cancer Volume-ranked specialists across all relevant specialties.
- Specialty Oncology hub Programs, surgeons, hospitals across oncology.
- Procedure Whipple Procedure (Pancreaticoduodenectomy) First-line treatment with success rates, recovery, hospital pricing.
- Procedure Chemotherapy (per cycle) Alternative treatment path with cost and recovery data.
- Browse All 79 conditions Map condition → specialty → first-line treatment.
- Browse 9 destination countries Cost-of-care profiles, hospital programs, visa playbooks.
- Compare Hospital comparison Side-by-side accreditations, ratings, beds, and pricing.
- Compare Doctor comparison Surgeons compared on volume, fees, languages, video-consult availability.
- Tool Match-me triage Three questions, get a specialty + destination + 3-hospital shortlist.
- Tool Cost calculator Hospital-reported pricing across procedures × destinations.
- Action Free second opinion Independent panel review of your case in 48 hours — no charge.
Next step · Pancreatic Cancer
Free second opinion on your Pancreatic case.
Share imaging and the current plan. Multidisciplinary board returns a written opinion within 5–10 working days — no obligation to travel.