Relda Marshall’s only pancreatic cancer symptoms seemed benign to her — stomach pains and belching after eating.

Eventually, Relda saw her local doctor in Mount Pleasant, Texas. He prescribed an acid-reducer and ordered bloodwork and an ultrasound. A follow-up CT scan confirmed that she had a two-centimeter tumor on her pancreas.

“It was a shock,” Relda says. “I had never been really sick.”  After discussing the diagnosis...