PANCREATIC DISEASE COHORT A Registry and Biospecimen Bank to Better Understand Pancreatic Disease

Pancreatic cancer is the fourth leading cause of cancer death in both men and women in the United States. According to the American Cancer Society facts and figures, approximately 43,920 people in the United Sates will be diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2012, and it is expected that 37,390 will die from the disease. The dismal prognosis of the disease is clearly depicted by the fact that its incidence approximates its mortality. Pancreatic cancer has a 95% case fatality rate. The etiology of pancreatic cancer remains elusive and our knowledge of its precursors and natural history is preliminary and incomplete. The uniform fatality of the disease merits priority attention in the search for its cause. Due to the rapid progression of the disease, early detection and prevention provides the best hope for reducing morbidity and mortality. However, the few screening tests available for early detection and/or prevention of neoplastic lesions are poorly studied and prohibitively impractical in the general population. Further, few pancreatic cancer risk factors are well established or widely accepted. Advanced age, family history, cigarette smoking, diabetes, and some dietary risk factors are established or suspected risk factors. Due to the high volume of individuals seen at the pancreas center, we plan on enrolling 500+ individuals per year who have either been diagnosed with pancreatic disease or are at high risk for developing pancreatic cancer. All participants enrolled during a clinic/non clinic visit at Columbia University Medical Center (CUMC) will undergo a baseline visit and up to 3 subsequent visits. Additionally, based on the different conditions of pancreatic disease that we are enrolling, not all subjects will participate in all aspects of the program. For example, only individuals with cancer or pre-neoplastic lesions will have tissue collected and banked.