ABSTRACT
Squamous cell carcinoma of the pancreas is very rare as pancreas does not have any squamous cells. Only a few cases have been reported in the literature so far. We describe such a case where in the patient presented with painless jaundice. CT and EUS confirmed the pancreatic mass biopsy of which showed squamous cell cancer.
Subject(s)
Carcinoma, Squamous Cell/pathology , Carcinoma, Squamous Cell/therapy , Pancreatic Neoplasms/pathology , Pancreatic Neoplasms/therapy , Aged , Carcinoma, Squamous Cell/diagnosis , Humans , Male , Pancreatic Neoplasms/diagnosisABSTRACT
Gastric varices (GVs) are notorious to bleed massively and often difficult to manage with conventional techniques. This mini-review addresses endoscopic management principles for gastric variceal bleeding, including limitations of ligation and sclerotherapy and merits of endoscopic variceal obliteration. The article also discusses how emerging use of endoscopic ultrasound provides optimism of better diagnosis, improved classification, innovative management strategies and confirmatory tool for eradication of GVs.
ABSTRACT
INTRODUCTION: Organ involvement in multiple myeloma (MM) is characterized by infiltrative disease or by a myelomatous mass known as a plasmacytoma. We present a patient with MM who had extensive extramedullary involvement of the colon and a review of the literature on colon plasmacytomas. CASE REPORT: A 57-year-old male with MM presented with disease relapse in 2007, workup showing biopsy confirmed left perinephric extra-medullary disease involving the adjacent colon. Positron emission-tomography (PET) exhibited intense pan-colonic fluoro-deoxyglucose (FDG) uptake and computed-tomography confirmed extensive infiltrating soft tissue thickening in the ascending, transverse, and descending colon representing plasmacytomas. The patient underwent an autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplantation after conditioning with high-dose melphalan. Restaging PET-scan showed complete resolution of colonic extra-medullary plasmacytomas. Extramedullary plasmacytomas (EMP) are rare and constitute 4% of all plasma cell tumors. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION: Colonic plasmacytoma is an extremely rare site, with fewer than 25 cases reported in the literature. Colonic plasmacytomas have different presentations depending on the size and location. Treatment options for primary EMPs include surgical resection, radiotherapy, and chemotherapy. The primary treatment option for secondary EMP is systemic chemotherapy. This rare pan-colonic plasmacytoma, as a part of extramedullary myeloma, showed an impressive response to chemotherapy.
Subject(s)
Colonic Neoplasms/pathology , Multiple Myeloma/pathology , Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols/therapeutic use , Colonic Neoplasms/therapy , Fatal Outcome , Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation , Humans , Male , Middle Aged , Multiple Myeloma/therapyABSTRACT
CONTEXT: We submit a case of intrapancreatic accessory spleen. CASE REPORT: A 33-year-old patient with history of dyspepsia underwent imaging studies suggestive of a neuroendocrine tumor. After referral to our institute, endoscopic ultrasound guided fine needle aspiration (EUS-FNA) confirmed diagnosis as intrapancreatic accessory spleen. DISCUSSION: An accessory spleen may develop from estranged mesenchymal cells due to fusion failure of the splenic anlage. The prevalence of an accessory spleen is 10-30% with 80% of them present at the splenic hilum and 17% in the pancreatic tail. Intrapancreatic accessory spleen is commonly misdiagnosed as a pancreatic tumor. Since, the differential diagnosis includes pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors, additional investigation with EUS-FNA should be considered when radiological diagnosis is not definitive. CONCLUSION: For diagnosis of intrapancreatic accessory spleen, radiographic imaging is useful, but lacks specificity without tissue diagnosis. Diagnosis can be safely and reliably established with EUS-FNA, leading to a benign prognosis and avoidance of unnecessary surgical intervention.
