{"id":97978,"date":"2019-06-06T15:01:09","date_gmt":"2019-06-07T01:01:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/?p=97978"},"modified":"2020-03-13T12:03:58","modified_gmt":"2020-03-13T22:03:58","slug":"pancreatic-cancer-study","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/2019\/06\/06\/pancreatic-cancer-study\/","title":{"rendered":"Native Hawaiians, Japanese Americans have higher risk of pancreatic cancer"},"content":{"rendered":"Reading time: <\/span> 2<\/span> minutes<\/span><\/span>

\"Â鶹´«Ã½Cancer<\/p>\n

Native Hawaiians and Japanese Americans have a higher risk than other ethnic\/racial groups of developing pancreatic cancer, according to a new study<\/a> by University of Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> Cancer Center<\/a> researchers published in Cancer Medicine<\/em>.<\/p>\n

“Pancreatic cancer is one of the deadliest cancers. It only has a five-year survival rate of 8 percent,” said Loïc Le Marchand<\/strong>, UH<\/abbr> Cancer Center epidemiologist and the Multiethnic Cohort (MEC<\/abbr>) study co-author. “There is no screening test for detecting pancreatic cancer early, when it is most curable. Thus, it is important to identify risk factors that are modifiable such as diet and lifestyle to prevent its occurrence.”<\/p>\n

Pancreatic cancer risk factors, including family history, diabetes, obesity, smoking and red meat intake, did not explain the higher risk for Native Hawaiians and Japanese Americans. However, researchers are on the right track to discovering why. The study also confirmed previous studies that African Americans are known to be at increased risk for the disease as well.<\/p>\n

\"Loic
Loïc Le Marchand<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

A better understanding of the causes of this disease is still needed through new research. Currently, MEC<\/abbr> research on pancreatic cancer is focused on conditions related to obesity, which may be particularly important risk factors for the disease in the Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> population.<\/p>\n

The UH<\/abbr> Cancer Center Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> Tumor Registry<\/a>, responsible for cancer surveillance in the state of Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span>, reports:<\/p>\n