My beloved mother just passed away from pancreatic cancer less than three months ago. Now her older brother is having problems and it sounds like maybe it has something to do with the bile ducts. But he and his wife are the type of people who do NOT ask questions - basically because they don't want to know.
Some of my uncle's symptoms are: major weight loss over the last year or two (possibly as much as 100 pounds), jaundice (stents were put in and it helped with the yellowing), fatigue, depression, loss of appetite. Now he is telling the family his doctor has discovered "something" in a tube and they are going to open him up and remove it and put the tube back together. Either he doesn't know (or is not saying), but this all seems very vague to me. Could it be that the doctor will go in and remove the "something" they see and check it for cancer cells? Will they be able to tell during the procedure if this has spread? They are telling him he will be in the hospital at least 2 weeks, which is a major red flag for me, because in today's world you don't get to stay in the hospital unless it is serious.
He does not seem to be in any pain. Is it possible to have this type of digestive tract cancer and not have pain? I know with my mother her pain did not come until the last few months of her life...are we looking at a similar situation? What are some of the questions they should be asking and tests they should be requesting?
Any information would be greatly appreciated.