You may feel shocked, angry, frightened, sad or numb. And you may be worrying about what will happen to you over the coming months and weeks, and how you and your family and friends will cope.
Pancreatic cancer can grow and spread quickly. You may feel you haven’t had much time, if any, to come to terms with being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer before being told that you may only have a few months or weeks to live.
You are not alone, and it is ok to ask for help. There are people who can support you. Your family may also need help dealing with how they are feeling, and the support we mention in this section is available for them too.
Talking to family and friends about how you are feeling can be comforting. These can be difficult conversations, and some people find it easier to talk to people outside their family or friends.
You can talk to a member of your healthcare team, who will be able to provide emotional support as well as medical care. You may see a palliative care team, who can provide emotional support to you and your family.
You can talk to someone about your beliefs or spirituality. Some people find it helpful to speak to a chaplain who will have links to all faith groups, or a spiritual advisor, either religious or non-religious. Most hospitals and hospices will have a chaplaincy.
Hospices and local cancer centres may provide free emotional support. For example, they may run group support sessions where you can meet other people with cancer. Your GP, nurse or medical team should know about any services that are available locally.
Some people find it helpful to talk to a counsellor. Counselling gives you a safe place to come to terms with your feelings and find ways to cope. It’s confidential, so you can be honest about how you feel. Your local hospice or hospital may offer counselling, and some hospices have counsellors who can visit you at home. Speak to your GP or nurse about what counselling is available.
You don’t have to face pancreatic cancer alone. Our specialist nurses on our free Support Line provide emotional support, and you can discuss your worries with them.
You can also speak to others in a similar situation on our online discussion forum.
“My partner and I didn’t talk much about his feelings about the future, as we preferred to live in the here and now. But he found talking to a counsellor a huge help.”
You may want to know how long you have left to live, or what will happen as you approach the end of your life. If you do want to know more, speak to your doctor or nurse. It can be difficult for doctors to give you a clear timescale, but they may be able to give you some information about your situation. Some people prefer not to know and to live each day as it comes. The doctors and nurses will respect this decision.
You may want to discuss things with your family as they might want different information from you. If you wish, you can give your doctors and nurses permission to speak to your family and answer their questions without you being there.
Published April 2021
Review date April 2023
