Predictive value of clinical features at initial presentation in pancreatic adenocarcinoma: a series of 308 cases

Pancreatic cancer is the fourth leading cause of cancer death in both men and women with a mortality: incidence ratio of 0.99. In an effort to describe the role of clinical features at initial presentation, we conducted a retrospective observational study in patients with a biopsy-proven diagnosis of adenocarcinoma of the pancreas. Between 1986 and 2001, 308 patients (160 males, 148 females) were diagnosed with pancreatic adenocarcinoma. The mean age at diagnosis was 70.1 yr (range: 34–96 yr). The mean survival was 7.6 mo (range: 0–97 mo). Statistical analysis was performed using log-rank tests and analysis of variance. As expected, age at diagnosis was a significant factor affecting survival, with older patients doing relatively poorly (p<0.05). Patients with a good performance status performed significantly better than those with a poor performance status (p<0.01). In addition, the presence of the tumor in the head of the pancreas was a predictor for improved survival (p<0.01). Although smoking increased the chances of detection at an earlier age, neither diabetes mellitus nor a positive smoking history had a statistically significant effect on the survival. Pancreatic adenocarcinoma is a disease of the elderly associated with a poorer outcome. Knowledge of possible clinical predictors of survival may lead to better patient counseling regarding prognosis.