Stroke Risk in Pancreatic Cancer Patients Undergoing Chemotherapy

Strategic Insights -

A recent study published in Pancreas, a journal of the Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, has shed light on the clinical characteristics and risk factors for stroke in patients with unresectable pancreatic cancer receiving chemotherapy. The research, conducted by a team of researchers from Kurashiki Central Hospital in Japan, involved a retrospective cohort study of 343 consecutive patients with recurrent or unresectable pancreatic cancer who started chemotherapy between April 2017 and December 2022. The study found that stroke occurred in 11 patients (3.2%) within the first 180 days after starting chemotherapy, and the combined score calculated with D-dimer and CA19-9 levels predicted the stroke risk in these patients.

Key Takeaways:

  • The study involved a retrospective cohort study of 343 consecutive patients with recurrent or unresectable pancreatic cancer who started chemotherapy between April 2017 and December 2022.
  • Stroke occurred in 11 patients (3.2%) within the first 180 days after starting chemotherapy, and was commonly associated with discontinuation of chemotherapy and short survival.
  • The median survival time after stroke was 28 days.
  • Elevated D-dimer (2.9 mg/mL) and CA19-9 (1621 U/mL) values at the start of chemotherapy were significant independent risk factors for stroke within 180 days.
  • The combined score calculated with these two factors stratified the stroke risk within 180 days and during the entire follow-up period of a median of 11.3 months and as long as 58.7 months.
  • The study concluded that the combined score calculated with D-dimer and CA19-9 levels predicted the stroke risk in pancreatic cancer patients receiving chemotherapy.

Statistics:

  • 343 patients were included in the study.
  • 11 patients (3.2%) experienced stroke within the first 180 days after starting chemotherapy.
  • The median survival time after stroke was 28 days.
  • The combined score calculated with D-dimer and CA19-9 levels predicted the stroke risk in 3.2% of patients within 180 days.

Sources:

  • "Stroke in Patients with Unresectable Pancreatic Cancer Undergoing Chemotherapy: Clinical Characteristics and Risk Assessment." Pancreas, 2025.
  • Kurashiki Central Hospital, Kurashiki, Japan.