Local woman promotes pancreatic cancer awareness. Her father died weeks after diagnosis

GREEN BAY, Wis. (WBAY) - Today is World Pancreatic Cancer Day. It has the highest mortality rate of all major cancers. The American Cancer Society says more than 50,000 Americans will die from it this year.

A woman in our area is raising awareness after her dad passed away less than three weeks after he was diagnosed.

Tammy Heiting’s dad, Robert Lindberg, passed away in 2020, 18 days after he was diagnosed with stage IV pancreatic cancer, meaning it had spread to other parts of his body.

Heiting says when her dad was diagnosed, she didn’t know anything about the disease. Now she’s starting a chapter in the Fox Valley for the Purple Stride Pancreatic Walk next April and push for more early screenings and detection.

“”What we’re looking to do is get people screened more often, letting them know the signs you might feel,” Heiting said.

Heiting said some of those signs include an upset stomach and digestive issues, jaundice, and early onset diabetes that comes out of nowhere.

She hopes everyone wears purple Thursday to help raise awareness for pancreatic cancer.

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