Read our fact sheet about screening
To read more about screening for pancreatic cancer, download our fact sheet, Screening for pancreatic cancer.
The aim of screening is to help to pick up cancers early, which means treatment may be more successful and the chances of surviving cancer may be better. There is no NHS screening programme for pancreatic cancer in the UK. But people who have a strong family history of pancreatic cancer might be able to have screening through the European Registry of Hereditary Pancreatitis and Familial Pancreatic Cancer (EUROPAC) research study.
All cancer screening programmes have advantages and disadvantages.
In the UK, the NHS currently runs screening programmes for breast, cervical and bowel cancer.
There is screening for these cancers because they meet certain conditions.
At the moment there is no programme in the UK to screen the general population for pancreatic cancer. The main reason is that there isn’t a screening test for pancreatic cancer that is reliable and accurate enough so that it:
Some people may have a higher risk of pancreatic cancer because they have a strong family history of it. Screening may be available for these people through the EUROPAC secondary screening study. This study is trying to find out the best way to screen for pancreatic cancer in people with a family history. Read more about the EUROPAC study.
The NICE guidelines have also recommended that some people with a family history of pancreatic cancer should be offered scans to check for pancreatic cancer. Read more about family history of pancreatic cancer and the NICE guidelines.
If you think you might have a family history of pancreatic cancer speak to your GP. If you have any of the symptoms of pancreatic cancer, speak to your GP.
To read more about screening for pancreatic cancer, download our fact sheet, Screening for pancreatic cancer.
You can also speak to our specialist nurses on our free Support Line with any questions about your risk of pancreatic cancer or screening.
If you would like the references to the sources used to write this information, email us at publications@pancreaticcancer.org.uk
We would like to thank the following people who reviewed our information on screening.
Updated August 2018
To be reviewed August 2021