



Sections of the pancreas:

  • Body—in the middle, located behind the stomach
  • Tail—on the left side, closest to the spleen

The Pancreas

The Pancreas
Copyright © Nucleus Medical Media, Inc.

The pancreas is made up of endocrine and exocrine cells. Each cell type has a different function. The endocrine, or islet cells, produce a number of different chemicals called hormones that enter the bloodstream and travel to other areas of the body to exert their effects. For example, the islet cells of the pancreas produce insulin, which breaks down and uses or stores sugars from food.

The exocrine cells of the pancreas produce digestive juices that travel through a system of tubes called ducts into the first section of the small intestine. These digestive juices contain enzymes that help process fat, protein, and carbohydrates in food, breaking them down into smaller units for better use by the body. The pancreas plays a crucial role in the body’s ability to process food, making it able to generate and use energy.

Pancreatic cancer greatly interferes with these functions, by damaging and destroying normal cells within the pancreas. Cancer of the exocrine cells occurs much more frequently than cancer of the islet cells of the pancreas. In fact, about 95% of all pancreatic cancers are within the exocrine system. This report covers aspects of this more common form of pancreatic cancer, called adenocarcinoma.