Most cases occur after age 50, and slightly more men than women are affected.
Cigarette smoking is one of the biggest risk factors for pancreatic cancer.
Five to 10 percent of all the cancers are inherited. No other medical center in the world treats as many patients for pancreatic cancer as Johns Hopkins. The Whipple procedure, the most aggressive and effective form of treatment, is a complicated surgical procedure performed more commonly here than in any other hospital in the world. Hopkins has taken the lead in the study and treatment of pancreatic cancer with the new discovery of the pancreatic cancer genes, the ongoing development of a cancer vaccine, studies of early cancer lesions and research into the best methods of performing pancreatic surgery. Hopkins physicians and researchers are exploring new diagnostic strategies through studies funded by National Cancer Institute grants and by private donors.