Back pain could be pancreatic cancer's first sign: Expert

New Delhi, Dec 7 Working from home has become the new norm in the pandemic, which means work is not restricted to office hours alone. Prolonged sitting in wrong posture in front of laptops and computers is leading to several problems including backpain, eye strain during this pandemic period. While, back pain itself can be discomforting, it could be related to more implications, including even pancreatic cancer, says an expert.

A study published in the monthly medical journal JAMA Internal Medicine found that there is a strong link between sitting for long hours, leading a sedentary lifestyle and death due to cancer.

Working from home is very different from working in an office. At home, we tend to sit on bed, use unsupportive chairs while working but infrastructure in the office is set up to support long working hours, Dr Saurabh S Mukewar, Consultant Gastroenterologist, Midas Multispeciality Hospital, Nagpur told life.

However, there are few things that one can take care of while working from home including finding time out from a busy schedule to stroll for at least half an hour after work. If that is also not possible then we need to get up in between and walk around the house a bit; maintaining an ideal height of the laptop and their work screen and adjusting the height of the computer screen at or slightly below the eye level; keeping a hard pillow on the chair for back support, he suggests.

In some cases, however, back pain could also mean a serious health issue such as pancreatic cancer. Pancreatic cancer develops in the tissues of the pancreas - an organ in the abdomen that lies behind the lower part of your stomach.

According to a report by All India Institute of Medical Sciences

 

( With inputs from IANS )