A case of adenosquamous carcinoma of the pancreas found with elevated serum cea value

Abstract

We report a case of adenosquamous carcinoma of the pancreas discovered by examination of serum CEA. A 84–year–old man, who had been treated for hypertension by a cardiologist of our hospital, complained very slight left lower abdominal pain. He had a fecal occult blood test and a check of serum level of CEA. Elevated serum level of CEA led further examination and the patient was diagnosed to have a tumor in the body of the pancreas. A laparotomy was performed and pathological findings showed that the tumor was characterized by the coexistence of adenocarcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma. For the chief complaint such as in our case, a primary examination would often be confined to lower bowel and a negative fecal blood test could possibly have resulted in delay of the diagnosis of pancreas cancer. Our case suggests that we failed to diagnose cancer of pancreas due to a primary attension to the lower abdominal pain. This suggests the need of more careful examination of other organs and treatment in patients with lower abdominal pain.