Pancreatic cancer screening in high-risk individuals was helpful in detecting intermediate-risk lesions in as many as 32% of the patients, and the screening did not cause any harm, Andy Silva-Santisteban, MD, said during his abstract presentation at the 2022 ACG Annual Scientific Meeting and Postgraduate Course on October 24, in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Dr Silva-Santisteban is research fellow at the Center for Advanced Endoscopy at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, Massachusetts.

Presenting the abstract cited for the Outstanding Research Award in the biliary/pancreas category, Dr Silva-Santisteban said “when feasible, such screening should be performed within the confines of a research study so more precise estimates of screening outcomes can be determined.”

Through the prospective, multicenter study, Dr Silva-Santisteban and colleagues assessed the benefits, harms, and outcomes of pancreas cancer screening among 252 participants who underwent pancreatic cancer screening at 5 centers across the United States.

Of the patients who underwent pancreas cancer screening (mean age 59.9 years; 69% female; and 79.4% White), 208 underwent endoscopic ultrasound (EUS) and 44 opted for magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography (MRCP).

Dr Silva-Santisteban said, “The yield of pancreatic cancer screening for high-risk lesions like pancreatic cancer was 0.8%, which is at the lower end of the range that has been reported in the literature. The yield of screening for intermediate-risk pancreatic lesions was 31.7%, almost all branch duct IPMNs [intraductal epithelial neoplasms] without worrisome features.” He added that there were no adverse events from screening tests or from further interventions. Also, there was no known association between abnormal blood sugars and pancreas pathology.

Based on these findings, Dr Silva-Santisteban advised patients to be well-informed on the benefits and harms from pancreatic cancer screening, and to opt for such screening whenever feasible to predict better outcomes.

—Priyam Vora

Reference:
Silva-Santisteban A. Oral 4 – Results of First Round of Enrollment from the Screening for Pancreatic Cancer in High-Risk Individuals (Pancreas Scan Study): A Prospective Multi-Center Study. Oral paper presentation. Presidential plenary session 1. Presented at: ACG 2022 Annual scientific meeting and Postgraduate course. Charlotte, North Carolina. October 24, 2022.