Pancreatitis

The pancreas is the gland that lies behind your stomach.and guts. It produces
enzymes and hormones.The digestive juices drain into the duodenum (part of the gut),
where they become 'activated' and help to break down food. The hormones insulin
and glucagon are produced in the pancreas, and then move into the bloodstream
to control your blood sugar levels.

When the pancreas becomes inflamed, this is called pancreatitis.
There are two types of pancreatitis - acute
and chronic.

Acute pancreatitis

With acute pancreatitis, the inflammation comes on quickly over a few hours,
and will usually go away leaving no permanent damage, although
it can be fatal if complications occur.
The number of acute pancreatitis cases has significantly
increased over the past 40 years. Each year, in the UK,
between 5-80 people, in every 100,000,
are diagnosed with acute pancreatitis.

Chronic pancreatitis

Chronic pancreatitis often starts with bouts of acute pancreatitis, and
eventually becomes a permanent condition. The pancreas becomes
constantly inflamed. Approximately 3-9 in every 100,000
people in the UK develops chronic
pancreatitis every year.

Causes

Gallstones and Alcohol are said to be the main causes of Pacreatitis,
Other less common causes include parasite infections, injury to the pancreas, viral infections
(such as mumps), high blood fat or calcium levels. In some cases (about 1 in
every 10 cases) it is not possible to find a cause.

Some adverse reactions to vaccines have been said to to cause Pacreatitis in particular
links to adverse reactions to Gardasil or the HPV vaccine.

Cancer Vaccine Linked to Pancreatitis
http://www.newsmax.com/health/
vaccine_pancreatitis/2008/08/26/124973.html

Gardasil Suspected in Australian Pancreatitis Cases
http://www.newsinferno.com/archives/3653