Why Etiology Is the Cornerstone of the Disease

A disease can be recognized only when its natural history is known.This old but fundamental concept implies that we must know the etiology of the disease in order to modify the consequence of an inappropriate lifestyle or environmental factors and to detect genetic predisposition.Moreover，etiology can be used to provide clues into methods of treatment and understanding the pathogenesis of a disease may lead to identify novel molecular targets and to develop new drugs for treating chronic pancreatitis.However，some aspects of chronic pancreatitis are presently not fully understood，such as the mechanisms which underlie the development of chronic pancreatitis，those which cause the pain which is the presenting symptom of the majorityof chronic pancreatitis patients，and the factors capable of maintaining the inflammation and the progression of the disease.Finally and most importantly，only epidemiological data exist regarding the progression of chronic pancreatitis in pancreatic cancer.Etiology seems to be an important factor in all these cases.(https://www.daowen.com)