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INTERNATIONAL PUBLIC HEALTH CONFERENCE IN TIRANA, ALBANIAThe treatment response in metastatic pancreaticcancer patientsBledi Kreka 1 , Dhurata Tarifa 1 , Manika Kreka 2 , Floreta Kurti 2 ,Gentiana Qirjako 3,41Oncology Service, University Hospital Center Mother Teresa , Tirana, Albania;2Faculty of Technical Medical Sciences, University of Medicine, Tirana, Albania;3Faculty of Public Health, University of Medicine, Tirana, Albania;4Institute of Public Health, Tirana, Albania.Aim: Treatment of pancreatic cancer remains ahuge challenge in Oncology. Chemotherapy is themain and the only treatment in many cases, butespecially in the metastatic cancer of pancreas. Theaim of our study was to assess the role of patientperformance status (PS) in the understanding thesuccess of treatment of progressed pancreaticcancer disease.Methods: There were 50 patients treated during a3-year period (2010-1012) at the ChemotherapyUnit, Service of Oncology, at the public hospitalin Tirana. All the patients were diagnosed withmetastatic cancer since initiation or they had relapseafter surgery. We did an evaluation for theperformance status according to ECOG. Thepatients were divided into two groups (each with25 patients): one group for interval PS: 0-1 and thesecond group for the PS interval: 2-3). The treatmentwas based on use of 5 Fu, every 21-28 days. Theevaluation was done after the first three cycles. Therewere excluded patients with very low performancestatus (those who could not use treatment); patientswith organ dysfunction; or patients above 70 years ofage.Results: In the first group, the patients had 90 cyclesof treatment, whereas in the second group there were130 cycles of treatment. In the first group, the partialresponse was achieved in 8 patients, whereas in thesecond group it was achieved in one patient only(P=0.03).Conclusion:The evaluation of performance status isan important parameter in the decision for treatmentof veryprogressed metastatic cancer. Our findings arecompatible with previous reports on this matter.Keywords: cancer patients, pancreatic cancer, performance status.ALBANIAN MEDICAL JOURNAL SUPPLEMENT45