Doug Hebert

The mission of The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center is to eliminate cancer through programs that integrate patient care, research and prevention, and education for undergraduate and graduate students, trainees, professionals, employees and the public.

When someone hears the words, Pancreatic Cancer, they immediately think “death sentence.” It is one of the most devastating, deadly forms of cancer. Because of the location of the pancreas, by the time the disease is discovered it is often in the more advanced stages of development, and in many cases, inoperable.

Treatment begins immediately, as time is of the essence. Patients and their families need as much information as they can get, as quickly as they can get it. Information regarding the disease’s stages, the patient’s nutrition, alternative and complementary medecines, and a patient’s eligibility in clinical trials is vitally important.

Because pancreatic cancer lacks a face and voice in the media (such as Lance Armstrong or Sheryl Crow type) it is a disease that is largely forgotten by many. Due to the public’s lack of knowledge about this grave and serious cancer, it is widely underfunded and lacking in resources for pancreatic cancer patients. The recent pancreatic diagnosis and media documentation of actor Patrick Swayze has lent a face to this disease, but because of the disease’s prognosis, his representation will most likely be short lived.

Very simply, the objective of this project is to provide easy-to-understand, useful information and not take away hope from patients and families like ours who have just been dealt a devastating blow.