Im a 46 year old dentist, stage 4 pancreatic cancer met. in liver, the folks at hopkins what to do a whipple with resection of liver. sound reasonable?

Not usually done: Whipple procedure is reserved for resectable pancreatic cancer. This by definition means localized disease to pancreas alone. That said, it is sometimes feasible to remove a single lesion from the liver while removing cancer from an abdominal organ like colon cancer. I would favor a trial of preop chemotherapy to see if the liver lesion responds and then decide to do radical surgery.

Depends on: Size and number of liver mets, i suppose. But surgeons at johns hopkins should know what they are talking about. I am sure they are excellent doctors who are giving you the best possible advice in the whole world. Best of luck.

In good hands: Yes, surgical treatment with Whipple is best if you are being offered it. Hopefully you have oligometastatic cancer (small number of mets all confined to a resectable area of liver)The Johns Hopkins knows how to treat pancreatic cancer.They took good care of my step-father I recommend themThey are unlikely to suggest futile care so trust their guidance. I wish you well. Stay optimistic it matters

Ask oncologists: I know you don't want to die at such a young age, but that is a big operation with poor results. Sometimes dying in peace you live longer. I have seen patients die in the ICU a lot worse off than simply at home. The reason Steve Jobs was heavily criticized for delaying life-saving(?) surgery, it was a very rare form of pancreatic cancer at an early stage. By the time he tried, it was too late.

Research: All sorts of things have developed in the past several years regarding pancreatic CA so inquire about preop chemo and or gene or monoclonal antibody therapy. Also inquire about the odds of liver resection clearing the liver from further mets. Hoping for the best for you!