Pancreas cancer is the fourth leading cause of cancer death in the United States.
Little is understood about its causes. Many potential risk factors have been examined, including alcohol, coffee, dietary fat, cigarette smoke, diabetes, and chronic pancreatitis. However, the only risk factor that has been consistently associated with pancreatic cancer is cigarette smoke. Recently, studies have shown that family history of cancer or family history of pancreatic cancer are risk factors for pancreatic cancer. These data suggest a hypothesis that genetic factors are involved in pancreatic cancer susceptibility.