Pancreatic Cancer Awareness Gibraltar holds Wear Purple day

Pancreatic Cancer Awareness Gibraltar, in conjunction with the GHA, recently marked World Pancreatic Cancer Day with its Wear Purple campaign.

Louis Baldachino, the charity’s founder, hailed the latest event a success, as many people took the opportunity to ask questions and receive guidance about the fatal disease, and thanked the GHA’s Luis Consigero and his team for their assistance.

Furthermore, the charity received the encouragement of many restaurants, shops, schools and corporate entities, with supporters posting photos of themselves in purple Pancreatic Cancer Awareness t-shirts.

Pancreatic cancer does not usually present symptoms until it is advanced, the charity said in a statement, and there is currently no early detection method or screening technique to help diagnose a disease that has a 96% mortality rate and has taken 60 people in Gibraltar over the last eight years.

Belly pain that spreads to the sides or back, loss of appetite, yellowing of the skin and a diabetes diagnoses are all symptoms, amongst others, of advanced pancreatic cancer.

Given the lack of clear symptoms, the charity and the GHA are working on a ‘vague symptoms pathway’ similar to NHS practice which will assist GPs in identifying the underlying cause and highlight the possibility of more serious conditions, such as pancreatic cancer.