Is upper abdominal pain a stomach problem? What you think is a minor stomach problem may actually be a bigger safety hazard!

gossip

There is no such thing as an easy life in the modern world. With a fast pace of life, high pressure, irregular work and rest schedules, and casual eating habits, many people believe that if they have upper abdominal pain, it must be a stomach problem.

So is it true that "upper abdominal distension and pain are stomach problems"? The answer may not be as simple as you think!

What you think is a minor stomach problem may be hiding a bigger safety hazard!

analyze

When it comes to stomach problems, many people think it is a minor illness and don't take it seriously. With the current social pressure, it is very common for young people to have some stomach problems. It is understandable that the elderly have some minor stomach problems as they age. If they have a stomachache, they can go to the pharmacy to buy some medicine and take it to get through it.

I would like to remind you in particular that you must pay attention to stomach pain that does not get better after taking medicine, because the pain area of ​​stomach pain sometimes overlaps with the pain area of ​​other diseases.

Such as the king of cancer - pancreatic cancer!

Image source: Copyright Library

When it comes to pancreatic cancer, the first thing that comes to many people’s mind is jaundice and weight loss.

In fact, the initial symptoms of the disease are not typical and can be easily confused with stomach problems. Abdominal discomfort or pain is a common first symptom. If the lesion involves the celiac plexus, the patient's back and waist will also ache, and some may even mistake it for lumbar muscle strain or disc herniation and take painkillers on their own.

What needs to be distinguished is that the pain caused by common stomach diseases is mostly paroxysmal and closely related to diet. For example, in gastric ulcers, the pain is mostly burning or dull, and its onset is related to eating. It hurts when eating, and the pain will gradually improve after resting for a while after meals.

Although common stomach diseases may also cause upper abdominal pain, the symptoms can basically be controlled by taking stomach medicine regularly under the guidance of a specialist.

The pain caused by pancreatic cancer is often manifested as persistent and aggravated pain, dull pain, more severe pain, and radiating to the waist and back. The abdominal pain caused by pancreatic cancer is not only ineffective for stomach medicine, but also persistent and has no obvious remission period.

The pain of pancreatic cancer is often related to body position. When a person lies on his back with the spine extended, the pain will be significantly aggravated. Squatting, sitting forward, or lying on the bed with the knees curled up can relieve the abdominal pain.

In addition, most pancreatic cancer patients will lose a significant amount of weight, and can lose more than 10 kg in a month. Although patients with common stomach problems may also lose weight, it will not be as significant as pancreatic cancer patients.

Therefore, what you think is "stomach pain" may be your pancreas sending out a distress signal!

Image source: Copyright Library

Well-known director Xie Tong died of pancreatic cancer in Beijing at the end of March 2023. "The King of Cancer" has become a hot topic again. Does it have early warning signs? Can it be prevented early? Let's take a look.

Pancreatic cancer

Why is it called the “King of Cancer”?

The pancreas has a special anatomical location, located between the stomach and spine. It is a gland deep in the abdomen. The early symptoms of patients are atypical and the onset is hidden. The first symptoms often depend on the location and extent of the tumor. If it is pancreatic head cancer, obstructive jaundice may occur in the early stage, while pancreatic body and tail tumors generally do not cause jaundice.

As the disease progresses, abdominal discomfort or pain, weight loss and fatigue, indigestion symptoms, jaundice, enlarged liver and gallbladder, abdominal masses, and ascites may occur.

Pancreatic cancer invasion pain is the main symptom of most pancreatic cancer patients when they seek medical treatment.

Most patients are already in the advanced stage of the disease when diagnosed, and there is no chance of radical surgery, resulting in a poor prognosis for pancreatic cancer. Difficult diagnosis and poor treatment effect are the main reasons why pancreatic cancer is called the "king of cancer."

Causes of Pancreatic Cancer

What are the risk factors?

Genetic and environmental factors are the main causes of pancreatic cancer.

About 10% of pancreatic cancer patients have a familial hereditary disease. Patients with hereditary pancreatitis, Peutz-Jegger syndrome, familial malignant melanoma and other hereditary tumor diseases have a significantly increased risk of pancreatic cancer.

Long-term smoking, advanced age, high-protein, high-calorie diet, and alcoholism are also related to pancreatic cancer. Obesity, chronic pancreatitis, or concomitant diabetes are possible non-hereditary risk factors for pancreatic cancer.

Beware of atypical symptoms of pancreatic cancer

Pancreatic cancer has no characteristic symptoms in its early stages.

If a person over 40 years old has symptoms such as upper abdominal discomfort, weight loss, nausea, jaundice, steatorrhea and pain, and no common upper gastrointestinal diseases are found by gastroscopy and B-ultrasound, especially if there is a family history of pancreatic cancer, they should be alert to the possibility of pancreatic disease.

For newly diagnosed diabetic patients over 50 years old, if they experience unexplained weight loss and/or large blood sugar fluctuations in a short period of time, or if there is a high risk of hereditary pancreatic cancer in the newly diagnosed diabetic population, they should undergo early screening for pancreatic cancer once confirmed.

Image source: Copyright Library

How can pancreatic cancer be detected?

Ultrasound examination: It is simple and easy to perform and is the primary screening method for pancreatic cancer diagnosis. However, due to the influence of gas in the gastrointestinal tract and the patient's body shape, it is sometimes difficult to fully observe the pancreas, especially the tail of the pancreas. Therefore, conventional abdominal ultrasound and plain scan CT physical examinations are not easy to detect early lesions.

Enhanced three-dimensional dynamic CT: Thin-layer scanning is currently the best non-invasive imaging method for examining the pancreas, and is mainly used for the diagnosis, differential diagnosis, and staging of pancreatic cancer. When differential diagnosis of pancreatic lesions is difficult, or when the patient is allergic to CT contrast agents, enhanced magnetic resonance imaging can be used instead of CT scanning for diagnosis and clinical staging.

Endoscopic ultrasound-guided fine needle aspiration biopsy: This is currently the most accurate method for localizing and qualitatively diagnosing pancreatic cancer.

Blood tumor marker CA19-9: It is a tumor marker with high application value and can be used for auxiliary diagnosis, efficacy monitoring and recurrence monitoring of pancreatic cancer. However, about 10% of pancreatic cancer patients do not express CA19 9 and need to be combined with other tumor markers, such as CEA and CA125, to assist in diagnosis.

Preventing pancreatic cancer

We should do the following five things

1. Avoid overeating, eat less high-protein, high-fat foods, eat less fried, deep-fried, and baked foods, and appropriately increase the intake of coarse grains, vegetables, and fruits.

2. Do not smoke or drink excessively.

3. Keep exercising and maintain a good mood.

4. Avoid contact with harmful chemicals such as naphthylamine and aniline.

5. To improve the detection rate of early pancreatic cancer, we must pay attention to high-risk groups, conduct regular cancer prevention examinations, and be alert to atypical symptoms.

in conclusion

Some of the "stomach problems" you think of are actually stomach problems, but some are not really stomach problems!

When you experience symptoms such as upper abdominal pain, don’t just assume it’s a stomach problem. It could also be pancreatic cancer or another disease that’s sounding the “alarm bell” for you. Be sure to seek medical attention promptly, pay attention to identification, and get early diagnosis and treatment!

Author: Hu Zhongdong, deputy chief physician, registered nutritionist, health manager, Healthy China Action speaker

Review | Ding Heyuan, deputy chief physician of the Department of Endocrinology, Shanghai Fifth People's Hospital

The article is produced by "Science Refutes Facts" (ID: Science_Facts). Please indicate the source when reprinting.

The pictures in this article are from the copyright gallery and are not authorized for reproduction.