Celebrating the NIPANC Family

World Pancreatic Cancer Day 2025

Today, on World Pancreatic Cancer Day, we pause to say a huge thank you to every single member of the NIPANC family. Whether you’re a survivor, a bereaved relative, a donor, a volunteer, a nurse, a researcher, or simply someone who has shared our posts or worn purple for us – you are part of something very special.

First, the urgent reminder: Know the symptoms – time really does matter

Pancreatic cancer is often called the “silent killer” because symptoms usually appear late, but they are there if we know what to look for:

Common symptoms include:

- Persistent abdominal or back pain

- Unexplained weight loss

- Jaundice (yellow skin/eyes)

- Loss of appetite or feeling full quickly

- New-onset diabetes (especially over 50)

- Changes in stool (pale, greasy, floating)

- Nausea and vomiting

- Sudden fatigue

Why time matters so much:

More than 50% of people in Northern Ireland are diagnosed at Stage 4 when cure is rarely possible. If caught early (Stage 1 or 2), surgery can offer real hope – but only around 10–15% of patients are diagnosed early enough.

Every week of delay reduces survival chances

If something doesn’t feel right, please contact your GP and mention pancreatic cancer – don’t wait.

The NIPANC Family – Chosen, not born

The dictionary says family is “a mother, a father and their children.”

We say family is whoever shows up when life gets hard.

At NIPANC we are not related by blood, but we are bound by three unbreakable things:

1. Shared values - we refuse to accept that pancreatic cancer has to be a death sentence. Those “statistics” are someone’s mum, dad, sister, brother, child, best friend. We fight for faster diagnosis, better treatment pathways, more research, and real emotional support.

2. Deep understanding - every person in the NIPANC family knows the devastation this disease brings. We’ve sat in the same hospital chairs, cried the same tears, asked the same impossible questions. Because we understand, we listen without judgement and hold space for every emotion.

3. Conscious choice - nobody is here because they have to be. Every trustee, volunteer, donor, nurse, researcher, and supporter has chosen to stand with us, often while carrying their own grief. That choice is what makes the NIPANC family extraordinary.

Today is our global gathering of everyone affected by pancreatic cancer

We remember those no longer with us.

We celebrate the survivors who light the way.

We wrap our arms around everyone walking this road right now - here in Northern Ireland and across the world.

To every member of the NIPANC family - whether you’ve been with us since day one or joined yesterday - thank you.

You are the reason no one in Northern Ireland has to face pancreatic cancer alone.

Together, we will keep shouting about symptoms.

Together, we will keep demanding faster diagnosis and better care.

Together, we will change the story of this disease.

Because that’s what families do.