12. Persistent Upper Abdominal Discomfort
It usually starts as a dull pressure or ache right below your rib cage. Some people feel it more after eating. Others notice it comes and goes for weeks.
This happens when a growing tumor irritates the pancreas or nearby tissues.
If antacids don’t help and the discomfort keeps returning, pay attention — especially if it spreads to your back.
11. Unexplained Mid or Lower Back Pain
Picture a constant dull ache between your shoulder blades or around your waist. Many patients first think they “threw their back out.”
But pancreatic tumors can press on nerves that wrap around to the back. Studies in Annals of Oncology show back pain is one of the earliest symptoms in up to 50% of patients.
Here’s the clue: the pain often worsens when you lie down and eases slightly when you lean forward.
10. Suddenly Feeling Full or Loss of Appetite
Your favorite foods no longer excite you. Or you feel stuffed after just a few bites.
This happens when the tumor affects hormones that control hunger or presses on the stomach.
It feels exactly like stress-related appetite changes — except it doesn’t go away when life calms down.
