There are two principles that need to be introduced at this time. Neoadjuvant is the term used for giving chemotherapy and/or radiation prior to surgery for potentially resectable pancreatic cancer disease. The use of neoadjuvant therapy is an area of research. According to some studies, chemoradiation may push back the cancer enough to allow some patients with apparent unresectable cancer of the pancreas who otherwise might not be candidates--to be eligible for surgical resection. Neoadjuvant therapy has the potential to eliminate any non-visible tumor cells that may not be removed by surgery alone.

Adjuvant therapy describes the practice of giving chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy after surgery to help augment the effects of surgery. Some patients who may be very elderly or in poor health, may choose not to receive any therapy. Too few patients are diagnosed Stage 1 for adequate graphic representation. This graph depicts Roswell Park’s multimodal treatment patterns for Stages 2-4.