[Guidelines in therapy of pancreatic carcinoma]

The definition of guidelines as merely describing a "corridor of action" and the existence of numerous up-to-date textbooks on the subject raises the question as to their purpose and necessity. This paper provides a critical commentary on existing guidelines. Above all it points out that the sections on preoperative diagnosis and palliative surgery require amendments barely 8 months after publication of the guidelines. Thus while the compilation of guidelines is laudable, it is both expensive and time-consuming, and this problem is potentiated by the need for constant amendment.