A Case of Early Carcinoma of the Papilla of Vater Diagnosed One Year after the Onset of Acute Pancreatitis

Katsumi Amikura, Hirohiko Sakamoto, Daisuke Yoshinari, Terutada Kobayashi, Masao Ogata, Takashi Migita, Youji Nishimura, Kenji Uchida and Youichi Tanaka

Department of Gastrointestinal Surgery, Saitama Cancer Center

A 61-year-old woman was admitted with early carcinoma of the papilla of Vater 1 year after recovering from acute pancreatitis treated conservatively. After acute pancreatitis stabilized, endoscopic findings of the papilla of Vater showed normal findings with a dilated main pancreatic duct revealed by magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography (MRCP). Cytology of the pancteatic juice showed class II. After a 1-year follow-up, endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) and abdominal computed tomography (CT) showed a dilated main pancreatic duct without any findings of tumor in the pancteatic head. Histological biopsy of the papilla of Vater showed adenocarcinoma. Pylorus-preserving pancreaticoduodenectomy showed well-differentiated adenocarcinoma limited to the mucosa of the duodenal papilla without vascular or pancreatic invasion or lymph node metastasis.

Key words
carcinoma of papilla of Vater, duodenal papillitis, acute pancreatitis

Reprint requests
Katsumi Amikura Department of Gastrointestinal Surgery, Saitama Cancer Center 818 Komuro, Ina, Saitama, 362-0806 JAPAN

Accepted
September 25, 2002

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