Pancreatic cancer survivor to set up support group with Pancare Foundation
STEVE Pendry beat the odds by beating a cancer which has a low survival rate and is now setting up a support group in Adelaide with the help of the Pancare Foundation.
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STEVE Pendry is a rarity — diagnosed with inoperable pancreatic cancer on Christmas Eve, 2013, he has defied the odds and survived.
Today, he will start SA’s first pancreatic support group at the Tennyson Centre in Kurralta Park.
After numerous bouts of chemotherapy and radiation to shrink the tumour, his doctors decided to try the “Whipple” procedure — also known as a pancreaticoduodenectomy.
“Surgeons removed the head of my pancreas, part of my small intestine as well as other parts of my digestive system’, Mr Pendry, of Wynn Vale, said.
More radiotherapy and chemotherapy followed until December 2014. Since then, he has had no treatment.
The cancer often has no symptoms so is not usually found until it is an advanced state, contributing to a low survival rate. In 2013, 2865 new cases were diagnosed in Australia, and the following year it killed 2547 people, according to the Cancer Council.
It is the 10th-most common cancer in men and ninth-most common cancer in women in Australia, and is the fifth-most common cause of cancer death.
Mr Pendry worked with the not-for-profit pancreatic cancer group — the Pancare Foundation — to establish the support group.
“While many support groups exist in South Australia for specific types of cancer, there is currently no formal support group for pancreatic cancer patients, their families and carers,” he said.
“Because each form of cancer has a unique set of characteristics and treatments, the nature of the support required by patients and families can vary.
“This will be a place where patients, their families and carers can come together to discuss how they are feeling, what works for them and what doesn’t and to get advice from people in the same situation.”
For more information call 1300 881 698 or email support@pancare.org.au
Originally published as Pancreatic cancer survivor to set up support group with Pancare Foundation
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