Odenton Woman Lobbies for Pancreatic Cancer Research

Jane Gasch’s uncle was a strong man, a former football player.  But pancreatic cancer took Bill Hutchinson’s life more quickly than anyone could have imagined.

Now Gasch, an Odenton resident, is part of a nationwide campaign to raise awareness and push for research funding to battle the disease, which is one of the world’s deadliest cancers.

Gasch joined with volunteers from the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network earlier this month to lobby Congress for a bill to create a strategic plan to fight pancreatic cancer.

“They wanted us to go and tell our personal stories and educate them about the bill,” Gasch. “Basically, what we’re asking for with this bill is a comprehensive plan of action.”

Gasch met with Maryland Senators Barbara Mikulski and Ben Cardin, as well as Rep. John Sarbanes, who is a co-sponsor of the bill.

The Pancreatic Cancer Research and Education Act calls for the National Cancer Institute to create a broad plan for tackling the pancreatic cancer problem and establish a pilot program for research into fighting the deadliest cancers.

“We’re not asking for money right off the bat, but we’re saying ‘help us put a plan in place, so we can make some progress,’” Gasch said.

Only one-quarter of those diagnosed with pancreatic cancer survive one year, and the five-year survival rate is less than 6 percent, the American Cancer Society reported.

Hutchinson, Gasch’s uncle, survived less than a year before passing away in 2010 at age 63.

"He was a big, tough strong guy," Gasch said. "He weighed in the mid-200s, lean and muscular and always doing something, working in the yard, playing with his grandkids. When he passed away, he was 130 pounds, and that was over the course of a year." 

More than 43,000 people were diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2010, with about 37,000 dying from it. Only lung and breast cancer killed more people in 2010.

There is currently no reliable form of early detection for the disease, and it usually shows no symptoms until a late stage.

Despite the deadly nature of pancreatic cancer, funding for research into prevention and treatment pales in comparison to other cancers. The National Cancer Institute reported $97.1 million spent on pancreatic cancer research in 2010. Breast cancer, by comparison, received $631.2 million despite killing nearly the same number of people.

“We just would like to see more of a balance among the top cancer killers,” Gasch said.

Gasch initially got involved with the action network by helping organize teams to run in local 5k races to benefit pancreatic cancer research. She said it is important for families and friends of those with the disease to speak out, because of the swiftness of the disease.

“They nickname it the silent disease, because people don’t normally live long enough to advocate for themselves,” Gasch said.

The action network urged Maryland lawmakers to support the bill in part because the state could benefit from research performed at institutions such as Johns Hopkins.

“This area is a hotspot for research and clinical trials,” Gasch said. “People come from other countries to Johns Hopkins and pay cash for these pancreatic cancer doctors because they’re the best in the world.”