What is the Pancreas?

The pancreas is a gland, about six inches long, located in the abdomen. It is surrounded by the stomach, small intestine, liver, spleen and gallbladder. It is shaped like a flat pear. The wide end of the pancreas on the right side of the body is called the head. The middle sections are the neck and body. The thin end of the pancreas on the left side of the body is called the tail. The uncinate process is the part of the gland that bends backwards and underneath the head of the pancreas. Two very important blood vessels, the superior mesenteric artery and superior mesenteric vein, cross behind the neck of the pancreas and in front of the uncinate process.

The pancreatic duct runs the length of the pancreas and delivers pancreatic secretions to the first portion of the small intestine called the duodenum. The common bile duct runs from the gallbladder behind the head of the pancreas to the point where it joins the pancreatic duct and forms the ampulla of Vater at the duodenum.

The pancreas has two main functions, the exocrine and endocrine functions. Exocrine cells of the pancreas produce enzymes that help with digestion. When food enters the stomach, exocrine cells release digestive enzymes into a system of ducts which lead to the main pancreatic duct. The pancreatic duct empties the enzymes into the first portion of the small intestine called the duodenum, where the enzymes aid in the digestion of fats, carbohydrates and proteins in foods.

The second function of the pancreas is the endocrine function, which involves the production of hormones. Hormones are substances that are made in one part of the body and circulate in the bloodstream to influence a different part of the body. The two main pancreatic hormones are insulin and glucagon. Islet cells (endocrine cells) within the pancreas produce and secrete insulin and glucagon into the bloodstream. Insulin serves to lower blood sugar levels while glucagon raises blood sugar levels. Together, these two main hormones work to maintain the proper level of sugar in the blood.

The Pancreatic Cancer Action Network would like to thank Kathleen Wagner and support from the Hamill Foundation and the Pickelner Fund for Pancreatic Cancer Research at MD Anderson Cancer Center for the illustrations provided on this page.

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