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Bill Eblin: An Almost 26-Year Pancreatic Cancer Survivor Talks Perseverance, Advocacy & New and Emerging Treatment Options

Updated By Julia Brabant December 2024

Diagnosed: June 1999 At Age 35
Status: No Sign of Active Cancer

Bill Eblin, of Peoria, Arizona, is adamant about advising people not to ignore any strange medical symptoms for more than a couple of weeks, and to seek a second opinion if symptoms persist after a diagnosis.

Bill lived with abnormal symptoms for more than two years, and by the end of that period, he had been diagnosed with cancerous tumors in his duodenum (the first section of the small intestine) and his pancreas.

“I had had stomach pain and frequent vomiting for months when I finally went to the doctor,” said the 53-year-old IT specialist originally from Groveport, a suburb of Columbus, Ohio. “The doctor wrongly diagnosed me with irritable bowel syndrome. I continued to suffer with pain and vomiting for another year and a half, until I finally was seen at the University of Miami Hospital in June of 1999.”

At that point, Bill had recently moved to Fort Lauderdale, less than an hour from Miami, for a new job when he underwent surgery to address what was causing his symptoms. Cancerous tumors on his duodenum and the head of his pancreas were successfully removed.

Bill appeared with other pancreatic cancer survivors at the Seena Magowitz Golf Classic, a fundraising event held every year (now a weekend-long affair called “Power of Us” consisting of a formal dinner, roundtable discussions and more to benefit the Seena Magowitz Foundation. Bill worked for Founder Roger Magowitz as his director of information systems in the early 1990s in Virginia Beach, Virginia, right after Bill was discharged from the Navy.

Uncovering Cancer Through Exploratory Surgery

For years, Bill has had multiple endocrine neoplasia Type 2, an inherited condition that predisposes him to medullary thyroid cancer, digestive problems caused by disordered nerves in the gastrointestinal tract, and muscle, joint and spinal problems. Before his cancer diagnosis, doctors had monitored him regularly for any problems arising from the multiple endocrine neoplasia.

Before surgery that day in 1999, Bill’s doctor had told him he had duodenal tumors, but the doctor wasn’t sure whether they were benign or cancerous and said Bill needed exploratory surgery to determine that. His doctor, Bill said, “drew a horseshoe on a manila envelope and said, ‘this is your stomach.’ He drew a line through the middle and said, ‘I’m gonna take all of this out.’ That was fine with me,” Bill said. “I just wanted the pain to stop.”

He underwent what’s called a “Whipple procedure,” the most commonly performed surgery to remove tumors in the pancreas.

The surgeon found that the duodenal tumors and the pancreatic tumor just discovered in the surgery were cancerous. When Bill came out of surgery, the doctor said he was a lucky man, because without attention to the tumor on his pancreas especially, Bill might have died in the next three months. Instead, Bill spent the next three months in the hospital recovering.

Bill also has more advice: live your life to the fullest extent possible, whether or not you have cancer. He was so shaken by events in his life related to cancer that he says for 10 years, until 2003 or so, he felt almost paralyzed socially. He had lost his parents—his mother to brain cancer in 1993 and his father to pancreatic cancer in 1995—and faced his own cancer scare just four years later.

Now, he wishes he hadn’t wasted time worrying or withdrawing from social activities.

“After my mother died, I figured someday I would get cancer,” he said. “I sat around for 10 years not wanting to marry again and not wanting to pass on any genes prone to cancer. But I realize now that’s no way to live. Get out and live, regardless of what you’re worried about.”

Giving to Charity & Advocating for Change

Bill is devoted to supporting cancer charities. He began donating part of his paycheck to the Seena Magowitz Foundation back in 2017, a practice he continues to this day.

“I’m glad Roger is doing something to recognize his mother’s illness and passing, making such a big statement,” Bill said. “I’m proud to know him.”

Bill also contributes regularly to charities that support brain and breast cancer research and spends much of his leisure time enjoying the wide-open spaces of Peoria, a Phoenix suburb.

“You can’t take for granted that you got a second chance,” he said. “I’m going to make the most of my life.”

Marking Close to 26 Years of Survivorship

In the almost 26 years since his pancreatic cancer diagnosis, Bill has continued to do just that. While, on the whole, he’s managed to do pretty well, health-wise, doctors have since identified five new tumors on Bill’s pancreas. None of the tumors appear active for cancer, but Bill and his care team continue to keep a close eye on them, with Bill attending follow-up appointments every eight-to-12 months to monitor the tumors.

Bill has also continued his advocacy efforts in the more than quarter-century since his diagnosis, channeling his own experiences and knowledge to support others facing similar challenges. He makes a point to spread the word about pancreatic cancer via social media, and he also continues to attend events hosted by the Seena Magowitz Foundation and occasionally participates in the foundation’s Pancreatic Cancer Support for Survivorship virtual support groups.

When spreading the word about pancreatic cancer, recent advancements and emerging treatment options, Bill often gives patients the same advice. First, he urges them to secure second opinions, and more, if necessary, especially if the first doctor says there is nothing he or she can do. Second, Bill urges anyone facing a new diagnosis to reach out to Roger Magowitz and the Seena Magowitz Foundation, noting that the foundation can point patients toward care teams, clinical trials and other critical resources that can help.

Third, he makes a point to tell people facing pancreatic cancer that, despite what many people think, the diagnosis is not a death sentence. There are plenty of existing and emerging treatment options out there, and he is living proof of that fact.

Bill also has some advice for patients who, similar to his own experience, have persistent symptoms, but are not getting answers.

“Go have genealogy tests to see if you have any markers for cancer,” he advises. “And get a full body scan; not just the abdomen. It isn’t cheap, but insurance will often cover it.”

Looking Ahead to the Future

Bill also offers hope for anyone facing a recent pancreatic cancer diagnosis, or anyone hoping to find new treatment options after others have failed to produce the intended results. He notes that while new treatment options are becoming available regularly, doctors and researchers are also making major progress in terms of enhancing and improving existing ones.

Take radiation, for example. When Bill’s mother had cancer, it metastasized all over her brain. The older forms of radiation available at the time took a heavy toll on her, effectively destroying healthy brain tissue along with the cancer cells.

Yet, nowadays, major progress has taken place with regard to radiation, with “targeted” radiation, or radiation that focuses exclusively on tumors or areas of concern while avoiding healthy cells, becoming increasingly prevalent in cancer treatment. New clinical trials are also emerging all the time, offering patients access to cutting-edge medicines and techniques that improve and expand treatment possibilities.

Bill stresses that while these advancements offer hope, they also highlight the importance of proactive care. He believes that the sooner patients seek answers, the more likely they are to find effective treatment options that will improve their outcomes.

Bill will celebrate 26 years of pancreatic cancer survivorship in June 2025, serving as living proof that, with the right care, perseverance and a belief in better options, survival beyond the expected is not only a possibility, but a tangible, achievable reality.

Video of Pancreatic Cancer Survivor Bill Eblin