Sixty-one years of pancreatic cancer in Denmark from 1943 to 2003: a nationwide study

Evolving knowledge in surgical oncology of pancreatic cancer: from theory to clinical practice-a fifteen-year journey at a tertiary referral centre

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is an increasing disease having a poor prognosis. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the effect of different models of care for pancreatic cancer in a tertiary referral centre in the period 2006-2020. Retrospective study of patients with PDAC observed from January 2006 to December 2020. The demographic and clinical data, and data regarding the imaging techniques used, preoperative staging, management, survival and multidisciplinary tumour board (MDTB) evaluation were collected and compared in three different periods characterised by different organisation of pancreatic cancer services: period A (2006-2010); period B (2011-2015) and period C (2016-2020). One thousand four hundred seven patients were analysed: 441(31.3%) in period A; 413 (29.4%) in B and 553 (39.3%) in C. The proportion of patients increased significantly, from 31.3% to 39.3% (P = 0.032). Body mass index (P = 0.033), comorbidity rate (P = 0.002) and Karnofsky performance status (P < 0.001) showed significant differences. Computed tomography scans (P < 0.001), endoscopic ultrasound (P < 0.001), fine needle aspiration, fine needle biopsy (P < 0.001), and fluorodeoxyglucose-positron emission tomography/computed tomography (P < 0.001) increased; contrast-enhanced ultrasound (P = 0.028) decreased. The cTNM was significantly different (P < 0.001). The MDTB evaluation increased significantly (P < 0.001). Up-front surgery and exploratory laparotomy decreased (P < 0.001), neoadjuvant treatment increased (P < 0.001). The present study showed the evolving knowledge in surgical oncology of pancreatic cancer at a tertiary referral centre over the time. The different models of care of pancreatic cancer, in particular the introduction of the MDTB and the institution of a pancreas unit to the decision-making process seemed to be influential.

Incidence of pancreatic cancer in Denmark: 70 years of registration, 1943-2012

BACKGROUND

The aim of this study was to monitor the evolution of the incidence of pancreatic cancer in Denmark over 70 years. We also compared registrations of pancreatic cancer in a nationwide population-based database, the Danish Cancer Registry, and a clinical database, the Danish Pancreatic Cancer Database, in 2012-2013.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

Registrations of pancreatic cancer from the Danish Cancer Registry over 1943-2012 were used to calculate age-specific incidence rates per 100 000 person years by sex and age in 5-year period, weighted by the Segi World Standard Population for age standardization. We used absolute numbers from the Cancer Registry and the Pancreatic Cancer Database, including distribution of topography of cancers registered in 2012-2013, to compare registration in the two data sources.

RESULTS

The incidence rates of pancreatic cancer among Danish men increased until 1968-1972, when a decrease was observed until the mid-1990s. A similar peak was observed in women a decade later but generally at lower incidence. After the mid-1990s, the incidence rates for both sexes increased until the end of the study period. In our comparison of registrations in the Cancer Registry and the Pancreatic Cancer Database in 2012-2013, we found that 29% of the incident cases registered in the Cancer Registry were not in the Database; and 11% of the incident cases registered in the Database, were not registered in the Cancer Registry.

CONCLUSIONS

The incidence of pancreatic cancer increased steadily during the last 20 years of our study period in both sexes. The differences in registration of incident cases in the Cancer Registry and in the Pancreatic Cancer Database indicate underreporting of incident cases of pancreatic cancer in Denmark. The magnitude of this underreporting cannot be estimated based on this data.

Danish Pancreatic Cancer Database

AIM OF DATABASE

The Danish Pancreatic Cancer Database aims to prospectively register the epidemiology, diagnostic workup, diagnosis, treatment, and outcome of patients with pancreatic cancer in Denmark at an institutional and national level.

STUDY POPULATION

Since May 1, 2011, all patients with microscopically verified ductal adenocarcinoma of the pancreas have been registered in the database. As of June 30, 2014, the total number of patients registered was 2,217. All data are cross-referenced with the Danish Pathology Registry and the Danish Patient Registry to ensure the completeness of registrations.

MAIN VARIABLES

The main registered variables are patient demographics, performance status, diagnostic workup, histological and/or cytological diagnosis, and clinical tumor stage. The following data on treatment are registered: type of operation, date of first adjuvant, neoadjuvant, and first palliative chemo- or chemoradiation therapy, and dates for milestones in referrals, diagnostic workup, treatment decisions, and treatment. For patients undergoing resection, data on operative evaluation of tumor stage, histological diagnosis, and duration of hospital stay are registered.

DESCRIPTIVE DATA

Death is monitored using data from the Danish Civil Registry. This registry monitors the survival status of the Danish population, and the registration is virtually complete. All data in the database are audited by all participating institutions, with respect to baseline characteristics, key indicators, and survival. The results are published annually.

CONCLUSION

The Danish Pancreatic Cancer Database has registered data on 2,217 patients with microscopically verified ductal adenocarcinoma of the pancreas. The data have been obtained nationwide over a period of 4 years and 2 months. The completeness of registration was 82%. The observed overall 3-year survival after diagnosis was 6%.

Increased pancreatic cancer risk following radiotherapy for testicular cancer

BACKGROUND

Pancreatic cancer risk is elevated among testicular cancer (TC) survivors. However, the roles of specific treatments are unclear.

METHODS

Among 23 982 5-year TC survivors diagnosed during 1947-1991, doses from radiotherapy to the pancreas were estimated for 80 pancreatic cancer patients and 145 matched controls. Chemotherapy details were recorded. Logistic regression was used to estimate odds ratios (ORs).

RESULTS

Cumulative incidence of second primary pancreatic cancer was 1.1% at 30 years after TC diagnosis. Radiotherapy (72 (90%) cases and 115 (80%) controls) was associated with a 2.9-fold (95% confidence interval (CI) 1.0-7.8) increased risk. The OR increased linearly by 0.12 per Gy to the pancreas (P-trend<0.001), with an OR of 4.6 (95% CI 1.9-11.0) for ⩾25 Gy vs <25 Gy. Radiation-related risks remained elevated ⩾20 years after TC diagnosis (P=0.020). The risk increased with the number of cycles of chemotherapy with alkylating or platinum agents (P=0.057), although only one case was exposed to platinum.

CONCLUSIONS

A dose-response relationship exists between radiation to the pancreas and subsequent cancer risk, and persists for over 20 years. These excesses, although small, should be considered when radiotherapy with exposure to the pancreas is considered for newly diagnosed patients. Additional data are needed on the role of chemotherapy.

A Systematic Review of the Burden of Pancreatic Cancer in Europe: Real-World Impact on Survival, Quality of Life and Costs

PURPOSE

The purpose of this study was to assess the overall burden of pancreatic cancer in Europe, with a focus on survival time in a real-world setting, and the overall healthy life lost to the disease.

METHODS

Real-world data were retrieved from peer-reviewed, observational studies identified by an electronic search. We performed two de novo analyses: a proportional shortfall analysis to quantify the proportion of healthy life lost to pancreatic cancer and an estimation of the aggregate life-years lost annually in Europe.

RESULTS

Ninety-one studies were included. The median, age-standardised incidence of pancreatic cancer per 100,000 was 7.6 in men and 4.9 in women. Overall median survival from diagnosis was 4.6 months; median survival was 2.8-5.7 months in patients with metastatic disease. The proportional shortfall analysis showed that pancreatic cancer results in a 98 % loss of healthy life, with a life expectancy at diagnosis of 4.6 months compared to 15.1 years for an age-matched healthy population. Annually, 610,000-915,000 quality-adjusted life-years (QALYs) are lost to pancreatic cancer in Europe. Patients had significantly lower scores on validated health-related quality of life instruments versus population norms.

CONCLUSIONS

To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to systematically review real-world overall survival and patient outcomes of pancreatic cancer patients in Europe outside the context of clinical trials. Our findings confirm the poor prognosis and short survival reported by national studies. Pancreatic cancer is a substantial burden in Europe, with nearly a million aggregate life-years lost annually and almost complete loss of healthy life in affected individuals.

Trends in cancer of the liver, gall bladder, bile duct, and pancreas in elderly in Denmark, 1980-2012

BACKGROUND

Cancers of the liver, bile duct, gall bladder and pancreas (HPB-c) are a heterogeneous group, united almost exclusively by a poor prognosis. As the number of elderly in the Western world continues to rise and HPB-c are associated with age, we wanted to examine changes in incidence, mortality, prevalence and relative survival for these cancers.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

HBP-c was defined as ICD-10 codes C22 (liver), C23-24 (gall bladder), and C25 (pancreas). Data derived from the NORDCAN database with comparable data on cancer incidence, mortality, prevalence and relative survival in the Nordic countries, where the Danish data were delivered from the Danish Cancer Registry and the Danish Cause of Death Registry with follow-up for death or emigration until the end of 2013.

RESULTS

The incidence and mortality rates of cancer of the liver and pancreas increased over time while the rates of cancer of the gall bladder and bile duct decreased. All HBP-c were more frequent in persons over the age of 70 than in younger persons. The relative one- and five-year survival rose in most HPB-c, but mainly occurring in the younger population of 0-69 years with only small to no gains in the 80 + group.

CONCLUSION

As the number of persons aged 80 years or more will increase dramatically in the following years, and our results show a gap in relative survival, it is important to continue to study this population in order to improve management and outcome.

Pancreatic surgery in the very old: face to face with a challenge of the near future

BACKGROUND

The proportion of octogenarians requiring surgery for pancreatic disease is rapidly growing. This trend will be continued during the next decades, posing a challenge to surgeons and the health care system worldwide. This study aimed to analyze the results of pancreatic surgery in octogenarians in terms of safety and survival based on a cohort of patients at a European high-volume center.

METHODS

During a 7-year period, 1,705 operations were performed, 76 in patients ≥ 80 years of age. Data on the octogenarians were retrospectively reviewed and compared to those of the whole collective and to contemporary data from the literature. Primary endpoints were mortality, morbidity, and survival.

RESULTS

Overall, 80 % had a malignant disease, and resections were performed in 50 % of all cases. Mortality was 11.8 % and morbidity 72.4 %. There were significantly more medical than surgical complications: 56.6 versus 34.2 %. Pancreatic fistula occurred in 5.3 %, postoperative bleeding in 3.9 %, and delayed gastric emptying in 19.7 %. The median hospital stay was 15 days and the intensive care unit stay 2 days. Mean survival was 28.2 months and in patients with cancer 22.6 months. The 1-, 3-, and 5-year survival rates were 61.4, 31.3, and 18.8 %, respectively.

CONCLUSIONS

Despite high mortality and morbidity rates, surgery remains the only chance for cure in most octogenarians with pancreatic disease. Careful patient selection is the key to success and improved long-term survival in this group, which will represent a substantial fraction of the population in the near future.

Nationwide improvement of only short-term survival after resection for pancreatic cancer in the Netherlands

OBJECTIVES

Evaluation of incidence, treatment, and survival trends after resection of pancreatic cancer at a national level.

METHODS

Using data on patient and tumor characteristics from the nationwide Netherlands Cancer Registry trends were analyzed for the period 1989-2008.

RESULTS

A total of 30,025 patients diagnosed with pancreatic cancer were included. The incidence remained stable over the 20-year study period at approximately 9 per 100,000 inhabitants. Resection rates increased from 8% in 1989 to 12% in 2008, adjuvant chemotherapy rates increased from 7% to 29%, and palliative chemotherapy rates increased from 5% to 19% (P < 0.0001 each). Relative survival proportions did not change over time; besides a minimal, nonsignificant increase at 3 months from 53% to 55%, these remained 34% at 6 months and 4.5% at 3 years. Among the patients undergoing tumor resection, relative survival increased from 82% to 93% at 3 months and from 51% to 63% at 1 year after diagnosis. However, no improvement was seen after 3 years (23%).

CONCLUSIONS

The increased short-term survival among patients who underwent resection probably reflects decreased postoperative mortality driven by ongoing centralization efforts. However, longer-term survival remained poor irrespective of the changes in management in the past decades.

Pancreatic cancer survival in central and northern Denmark from 1998 through 2009: a population-based cohort study

Objectives

Pancreatic cancer has a relatively low incidence but ranks fourth among cancer- related deaths in western countries. In Denmark, cancer survival generally is lower than in other countries with comparable health care systems. As a result, in 2000, a national strategy to improve cancer survival was introduced. Here we examine time trends in survival and relative mortality among pancreatic cancer patients, using Danish population and medical databases.

Methods

Using the Danish National Patient Registry (DNPR), we identified all incident pancreatic cancer patients (n = 2968) diagnosed between 1998 and 2009 in the Central and North Denmark Regions. We computed the 1-, 3-, and 5-year survival and relative mortality (MRR) and associated 95% confidence intervals (CI) adjusting for age and gender. Among surgical patients, we also computed 30-day mortality and 30-day MRR.

Results

Median age at diagnosis was approximately 71 years. The annual number of patients increased from 189 in 1998–2000 to 302 in 2007–2009. There was a slight improvement in 1-, 3-, and 5-year survival over time from 14.8% to 17.7%; 3.5% to a predicted 5.6%; and from 2.0% to a predicted 3.8%, from 1998–2000 to 2007–2009, respectively. Correspondingly, the adjusted relative mortality decreased from 1998–2000 to 2007–2009. Thirty-day post-operative mortality decreased from 12.2% in 1998–2000 to 5.8% in 2007–2009, corresponding to a 30-day MRR of 0.38, 95% CI = 0.09, 1.6 in 2007–2009.

Conclusion

There was a slight, albeit modest, improvement in survival and relative mortality in pancreatic cancer patients between 1998 and 2009. As we lacked staging information, it is not clear if this improvement is attributable to earlier stage at diagnosis. However, these improvements likely reflect the national cancer strategy which aimed to centralize cancer services and involved the introduction of palliative and adjuvant chemotherapy for pancreatic cancer in Denmark. The dismal prognosis of pancreatic cancer means that efforts to improve survival need to be intensified.

Epidemiology of pancreatic cancer in Norway: trends in incidence, basis of diagnosis and survival 1965-2007

OBJECTIVE

Pancreatic cancer is the second most frequent gastrointestinal cancer in the Western world. Few reports on concomitant trends in pancreatic cancer incidence, diagnosis, mortality and survival exist at the national level. This study provides a baseline overview of the temporal patterns in these four indicators over the past four decades in Norway.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

We analysed trends in incidence, basis of diagnosis, relative survival and mortality from the Cancer Registry of Norway for the period 1965-2007.

RESULTS

Included were 21,663 patients with pancreatic cancers. Incidence and mortality rates remained at around 6-8 per 100,000 over the study period. Diagnoses based on clinical examination alone dropped from 12.5% (in the 1950s) to <1% (in the 2000s), while use of imaging techniques, such as CT and MRI, increased from 3.6% to >30%. Previously high rates of autopsy-verified diagnosis and non-therapeutic surgery decreased accordingly. Consistently more primary tumours (from 12.9% to 19.4%) and metastases (from 12.5% to 22.4%) had histological examination, and use of endoscopy increased to approximately 10%. Relative survival after diagnosis of pancreatic cancer remains very low. However, in recent years, a modest improvement in short-term survival has been noted, with 1-year survival rates of 18% and 16% for males and females, respectively.

CONCLUSIONS

The incidence and mortality for pancreatic cancer remain largely unchanged, with few 5-year survivors. Improved short-term survival may reflect more aggressive use of surgery and chemotherapy. Further elucidation of risk factors in pancreatic cancer is needed to enable effective prevention, early detection and improved treatment strategies.