The news that beloved game show host Alex Trebek has advanced stage pancreatic cancer hit his millions of fans hard this week. His illness has elicited heartbreak and support. As a clinician who treats pancreatic cancer, I anticipated the reaction that would follow next.
Fear.
While it is a rare form of cancer, pancreatic cancer is possibly the most lethal. Survival rates are slim – fewer than 10 percent with advanced disease will survive five years after diagnosis. It is also fairly asymptomatic until it reaches an advanced stage, contributing to the high mortality rate.