A Case Report of Pancreatic Tail Cancer Presenting as a Splenic Abscess

Yoo, Jae Young; Park, Choong Kee; Kim, Hak Yang; Kim, Yong Bum; Kim, Jong Hyeok; Yoon, Dae Sung; Lee, Jong Min; Kim, Sung Gyun; Choi, Jong Hyoung; Kim, Dae Kyoung; Kang, In Soo

Abstract

The splenic involveent by pancreatitis is an uncommon entity, including intrasplenic pseudocyst, abscess, hemorrhage, infarction, splenic rupture, and vascular injury. Splenic abscess may be caused by inflammation of pancreas. Panceatic cancer is a rare cause of acute pancreatitis and an extremely rare cause of pancreatic abscess. Several diseases developed in the splenic hilum and pancreatic tail, require differential diagnosis. particularly, it is difficult to diagnose a pancreatic tail cancer without specific symptom or sign. We have examined a sixty four-year-old woman complaining of left upper quadrant pain, and reported that it is a case of intrasplenic abscess assosiated with acute pancreatitis and pancreatic tail cancer. The case was confirmed by resected specimen. On operative findings, the peripancreatic fatty tissue had severe adhesions to the pancreatic tail and splenic hilum, where the abscess had formed. By microscopic examination, hemorrhagic neciasis and inflammatory change were observed in the spleen specimen. The pancreatic tail specimen had a 2*2 cm sized mass and was proven to be a well-differentiated adenocarcinoma with hee resection margin.