Pancreatic cancer can show various symptoms or signs to people in the body. In most cases, symptoms are not apparent until the cancer has developed and spread to the area. These symptoms that develop are not specific to the pancreas, because they mirror other problems. If the cancer is in the head of the pancreas, it can cause symptoms such as nausea, jaundice, weight loss, itching, dark urine, abdominal pain, back pain, light-colored stools, and vomiting. In the body or tail of the pancreas, symptoms may be weight loss and stomach and/or back pain. In most cases, if the cancer is in the head of the pancreas, symptoms will appear more often than those in the body and tail. Doctors and scientists don't know the cause of pancreatic cancer. However, they know the risk factors that can cause it. There is an increased risk of developing cancer when a person has symptoms. The risk factors could be some other health problem and not cancer. Once your doctor knows your risk factors, he or she can help you develop a plan and lifestyle to reduce your risks. Many risk factors include age, sex, race/ethnicity, smoking, obesity and diet, diabetes, and family history. Most people with pancreatic cancer are over the age of forty-five, and men are more likely to get cancer than women. Blacks have a higher risk than Hispanics, whites or Asians of getting pancreatic cancer. If you are a smoker, you are two-thirds as likely to develop it as non-smokers. Researchers have determined that obese people, due to their diet, have a greater risk of developing cancer and dying from it. People who suddenly develop type 2 diabetes could be an early symptom of a... middle of paper ......and cancer, pancreatic cancer. An estimated 45,220 adults in the United States will be diagnosed with pancreatic cancer this year. An estimate of deaths due to this disease is approximately 38,460 deaths. This makes cancer the tenth most common cancer in men and the ninth most common cancer in women. It is also the fourth leading cause of cancer death in men and women. Because pancreatic cancer is difficult to diagnose, it is often discovered only in advanced stages, when the cancer can no longer be removed with surgery. The survival rate is very tragic in this condition. The overall one-year survival rate of people who survive pancreatic cancer is 26%, and the five-year survival rate of people who survive pancreatic cancer is about 6%. If the cancer is detected at an early stage, the five-year survival rate is almost 22%..