James Farrell, MBChB

James Farrell, MBChB, is an internationally recognized expert in pancreatic diseases. He maintains a busy clinical practice focused on all aspects of interventional endoscopy, gastrointestinal cancer and pancreatic diseases including endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) and endoscopic ultrasound (EUS) evaluation of pancreatic malignancy, pancreatic cysts, pancreatitis and individuals at risk for pancreatic malignancy.

“My clinical commitment is to improve outcomes for patients with pancreatic disease, either by early detection or by optimizing treatment,” he says. “I tell patients and their families there are many treatment options out there and that this is about them—and us helping them manage their disease properly.”

In addition to his clinical work and research, Dr. Farrell is director of the Yale Medicine Pancreatic Diseases Program, which brings together a variety of pancreatic specialists including gastroenterologists, surgeons, oncologists and nurses who focus on pancreatic disease. “The greatest development that’s happened in the field of pancreatic disease is our understanding of the basic mechanisms underlying these diseases that has allowed us to improve early detection as well as treatment responses,” Dr. Farrell says. “That really wasn’t there 10 years ago.”

Dr. Farrell has addressed pancreatic disease on a national and international level as a member of such organizations as the NIH/NCI Pancreas Cancer Task Force. As a researcher, he is known for his development of personalized therapy approaches and early detection biomarkers for pancreatic cancer. He is an associate professor of medicine (digestive diseases) at Yale School of Medicine.