8. Dark-colored urine
Pancreatic cancer could also cause dark colored urine in the same way it causes light-colored stools and jaundice.
When red blood cells breakdown, a yellowish-orange pigment called bilirubin is produced. This pigment is excreted from the body in any of two ways: one of which is via urine in the form of urobilinogen which gives urine its characteristic yellowish hue; or via stool in the form of stercobilinogen which gives feces its brown color. However, before bilirubin is excreted via stool, it first becomes metabolized by the liver into bile which is then stored in the gallbladder prior to being released into the gut via the common bile duct
As the pancreatic tumor grows, it presses on and impinges the common bile duct (the passageway of bile), causing blockage, preventing bile from being released into the gut. This causes bilirubin to build up in the bloodstream since the liver and gallbladder are now backed-up. The excess bilirubin in the blood then makes its way into the kidneys, urinary bladder and then out of the body, resulting in urine that is darker, often cola-like in appearance, compared to its usual clear to light-yellow color.
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