Pancreatic Cancer Awareness Month

David McRae
Managing Director
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With Pancreatic Cancer Action Scotland (PCAS) as the official charity partner of Just Employment Law, in addition to the proceeds we aim to raise for the Charity, our aim has always been to raise as much awareness of pancreatic cancer as possible.

As November is Pancreatic Cancer Awareness Month, we wish to take this opportunity to shed some light on the work that PCAS does. 2025 marks 15 years of tireless work from the Charity and, within this time, the pancreatic cancer 5-year survival rate has increased from 3% to just over 7%. Before 2010, there had been no movement in the 5-year survival rate for almost 50 years.

Despite pancreatic cancer being the UK’s 5th biggest cancer killer, it receives just 3% of research funding. Public awareness of the potential symptoms is extremely low and raising awareness can quite literally save lives.

The main symptoms are as follows:

• Jaundice
• Mid back pain or discomfort
• Upper abdominal pain or discomfort
• Diabetes
• Indigestion
• Loss of appetite
• Nausea and vomiting
• Change in bowel habits
• Fatigue
• Unexplained weight loss

If you are experiencing a variety of these symptoms simultaneously, it is important to relay this to your GP or health professional to reinforce why you are concerned about pancreatic cancer.

The Charity’s mission is to improve the survival rates of pancreatic cancer by ensuring more people are diagnosed early. Early diagnosis is vital because, if pancreatic cancer can be diagnosed and treated at an early stage, survival rates are significantly greater. Pancreatic cancer currently has the lowest 5-year survival rare of the 22 most common cancers, and this is largely due to late diagnosis.

There are many ways in which you can help PCAS achieve its mission and, however you choose to take action, you can help to save lives.

Topics: Pancreatic Cancer Action Scotland