Although the association between diabetes mellitus (DM) and pancreatic carcinoma (PC) is well established, the nature of this relationship still remains unknown. Two relevant questions exist: 1) Is DM a consequence of PC? 2) Is DM a previous condition and a risk factor for PC? Two patients with pancreatic ductal carcinoma (PDC) and DM are presented. In one, hyperglicemia occurred simultaneously to the development of the tumor and in the other, DM preceded the neoplasia for several years. The relation between DM and PDC is discussed and it is concluded that PDC may either lead to DM or, conversely, DM might be a risk factor for the development of PDC. We suggest that in some conditions, patients with DM should be investigated to exclude PDC.
Diabetes mellitus; Pancreatic carcinoma; Ductal carcinoma; Amylin
