Republican politician Ben Sasse shared sad news on social media Tuesday: He expects to die soon from pancreatic cancer.
Sasse, who represented Nebraska in the U.S. Senate from 2015 to 2023, revealed on the X show that he has been diagnosed with “metastatic stage 4 pancreatic cancer” and expects to die from the disease.
“Advanced pancreatic disease is a nasty disease. It’s a death sentence,” Sasse wrote. “But I was also already given a death sentence before last week. Everyone does that.”
In light of the holiday season, Sass reflected on what his diagnosis meant to him.
“Now is not a good time to tell everyone you are marching to the beat of a fast drummer, but the season of Advent isn’t the worst,” he wrote, referring to Advent, the Christian season of waiting and preparing for Christmas. “As Christians, the weeks leading up to Christmas are a time when we focus on hope for what’s to come.”
The American Cancer Society reports that pancreatic cancer accounts for about 3% of all cancers and about 8% of all cancer deaths in the United States. The disease has killed about 51,980 people this year and claimed the lives of several celebrities, including Alex Trebek, Aretha Franklin and Jerry Springer, according to the group.
Why is the survival rate for pancreatic cancer so low?
Pancreatic cancer is difficult to diagnose due to the lack of cost-effective screening that can reliably detect the cancer in people without noticeable symptoms.
As a result, most cases are diagnosed at an advanced stage. This is often stage 4, when the cancer has spread to other parts of the body.
Still, there are exceptions in some cases. For example, Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s pancreatic cancer was discovered during a routine medical exam. After undergoing surgery for treatment, she lived for more than 10 years, which is unusual among pancreatic cancer patients.
Most people diagnosed with this disease are not candidates for surgery because their cancer has metastasized, meaning it has spread outside the pancreas to other parts of the body. Although treatable, most pancreatic cancers are considered incurable.
Who else has died from pancreatic cancer?
Trebek passed away in November 2020 at the age of 80, about 20 months after announcing that he had been diagnosed with stage 4 pancreatic cancer. That’s more than twice as long as the average patient lives after diagnosis, according to the Hershberg Foundation for Pancreatic Cancer Research.
That same year, civil rights icons John Lewis and U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ginsburg also died of pancreatic cancer at the ages of 80 and 87, respectively.
Franklin died of the disease in 2018 at age 76, Steve Jobs in 2011 at age 56, Patrick Swayze in 2009 at age 57, Luciano Pavarotti in 2007 at age 71, and Springer in 2023 at age 79.
What are the risk factors for pancreatic cancer?
The American Cancer Society reports that the likelihood of developing pancreatic cancer is influenced by certain risk factors that can be controlled.
- People who smoke are about twice as likely to be affected.
- People who are “very overweight” are 20% more likely.
- Diabetes, especially type 2 diabetes, puts people at increased risk.
- Chronic inflammation of the pancreas is commonly associated with, and increases the likelihood of, smoking and heavy alcohol consumption.
Other factors include age (at least two-thirds of patients are over 65 years old), gender (men are slightly more likely to be affected), and genetic genetic mutations (found in 10% of cases).
What are the symptoms of pancreatic cancer?
Before his diagnosis, Trebek said he had persistent abdominal pain, which Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine reports is often a dull ache in the upper abdomen or upper back.
The Johns Hopkins School of Medicine says, “This is likely caused by a tumor forming in the body or tail of the pancreas, as it can press on the spine. Some patients complain of pain that starts in the mid-abdomen and radiates to the back.” The pain may be worse when you lie down, but it is often relieved when you lean forward. Pancreatic cancer pain varies from person to person. ”
Symptoms may also include jaundice, pain, and weight loss.
