Extrapancreatic malignancies in patients with pancreatic cancer: epidemiology and clinical consequences.

OBJECTIVES

To investigate the incidence, characteristics, and prognostic impact of prior extrapancreatic malignancies on patients with pancreatic cancer (PDAC).

METHODS

Records from 1733 patients who underwent surgery for PDAC were analyzed for the occurrence of prior extrapancreatic malignancies. Patients' records showing extrapancreatic malignancies were then analyzed for tumor type, epidemiological data, risk factors, PDAC tumor stage, and long-term survival.

RESULTS

A total of 239 patients with PDAC (13.8%) had a history of 271 extrapancreatic tumors; 26 patients had a history of two pancreatic cancers, and 3 patients had 3 extrapancreatic cancers. The most common extrapancreatic tumors were breast cancer (56 patients) and prostate cancer (41 patients), followed by colorectal, reno/urothelial, and gynecologic tumors (39, 32, and 23 patients, respectively). No significant difference in overall survival was found between patients with PDAC with or without extrapancreatic malignancies.

CONCLUSIONS

Pancreatic cancer is associated with extrapancreatic malignancies in a remarkable number of patients. A history of extrapancreatic malignancies does not influence prognosis and should not be an obstacle to a curative therapeutic approach. Surveillance of patients with extrapancreatic malignancies, especially breast, prostate, and colorectal cancer, could allow for earlier PDAC diagnosis and therefore improve prognosis of these patients.