Pancreatic cancer is an aggressive cancer associated with a poor prognosis as a large proportion of these patients have locally advanced disease or metastases at the time of diagnosis. Currently... Show morePancreatic cancer is an aggressive cancer associated with a poor prognosis as a large proportion of these patients have locally advanced disease or metastases at the time of diagnosis. Currently onlypatients with localized pancreatic tumors can undergo surgery, which is the cornerstone in thetreatment of pancreatic cancer, whether or not preceded by neoadjuvant (chemo/radio)therapy. To establish the diagnosis, imaging techniques are used, tumor tissue must be obtained, and certain tumor markers can be determined in the blood. During surgery, the tumor must be removed in its entirety to prevent early recurrence. This thesis describes the potential role of tumor markers, which can be determined in the blood, and several experimental optical imaging techniques applied to pancreatic cancer. Show less
