Pancreatic diseases on the rise in South India: Surgeons

The burden of pancreatic diseases among the southern states is on the rise and it has the potential to become a major public health challenge in the coming years.

Hyderabad: The burden of pancreatic diseases among the southern states is on the rise and it has the potential to become a major public health challenge in the coming years, experts in pancreatic diseases and GI surgery said.

It is reported that southern states have the highest incidence of acute pancreatitis with 200 cases out of 1 lakh population. The most common reason for acute pancreatitis is alcohol consumption and gallstones, said experts on the concluding day of the national conference-workshop on ‘Advanced and Robotic Pancreatic Surgeries’ organised by Yashoda Hospitals, Hitec City.

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 “Every year almost 1.4 million people are diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and less than 10 per cent live five years after diagnosis. Lifestyle factors like tobacco smoking, heavy alcohol consumption, obesity and physical inactivity pose higher risk. Males above 50 years of age are at an elevated risk,” said Director, Yashoda Group of Hospitals, Dr Pavan Gorukanti.

The workshop organised by Yashoda Hospital in collaboration with Indian Hepato-Pancreato- Biliary surgeons Association (IHPBA), featured over 500 practicing surgeons and 20 eminent national faculty in the field of pancreatic health. It was inaugurated by Managing Director, Yashoda Group of Hospitals, Dr.G.S.Rao and Dr. Pavan Gorukanti in the presence of senior surgical gastroenterologist and robotic surgeon, Dr. Vijaykumar Bada and others.