Researchers Link Diabetes and Pancreatic Cancer

A link between diabetes and pancreatic cancer has been established by a team of Australian researchers.

Writing in the Annals of Surgical Oncology, a team of researchers from University of Melbourne report their statistical analysis of diabetes and pancreatic cancer data from 1973-2013.

After analyzing the data, the researchers concluded that there is a "time-dependent link" between being diagnosed with diabetes and pancreatic cancer, the University of Melbourne said in a statement.

The research, which is the largest analysis on such a link published to date, may go on to help doctors diagnose cases of pancreatic cancer earlier. Currently, most cases of pancreatic cancer are diagnosed at an advanced and incurable stage of the disease.

Dr. Mehrdad Nikfarjam, a liver, pancreas and biliary specialist from the Department of Surgery at the University of Melbourne said that the research highlights scenarios where doctors may be tipped too to a patient developing pancreatic cancer by a case of newly diagnosed diabetes without and obvious cause.

"The study revealed the risk of pancreatic cancer was greatest after the diagnosis of diabetes but remained elevated long after the diagnosis, Nikfarjam said. "The presence of diabetes remains a modest risk factor for the development of a cancer later in life."

Nikfarjam recommends the institution of a pancreatic cancer screening system, even though the occurrence of pancreatic cancer in the population Is generally low.

The priority on screening should be on patients with new-onset diabetes but can later be expanded to long-standing diabetic patients," Nikfarjam said.

"New onset diabetes is more prevalent in people over the age of 55. It may be important to consider screening all newly diagnosed diabetics for pancreatic cancer, particularly those without significant risk factors for developing diabetes in the first place."