Endoscopic Findings of the Upper Digestive Tract in Patients with Pancreatic Cancer

Abstract

Endoscopic findings of the upper digestive tract caused by local portal hypertension due to portal vein invasion by pancreatic cancer were compared with those due to liver cirrhosis. The subjects were 86 patients with pancreatic cancer not including those having chronic hepatitis or liver cirrhosis and 376 patients with liver cirrhosis.
Endoscopy of the upper digestive tract was performed with special attention to gastroesophageal varices and gastric mucosal lesions. Varices were noted in 17 (20%) of the pancreatic cancer patients, but they were observed more frequently in those having cancer in the body or the tail of the pancreas than in those having cancer in the head of the pancreas. Gastric mucosal lesions were observed in 6 (7%) . Of the liver cirrhosis patients, varices were observed in 264 (70%) , and gastric mucosal lesions were noted in 138 (52%) of those having varices.
The incidence of varices was different with the site of pancreatic cancer. Also, the frequency of gastric mucosal lesions complicating varices was lower than that of portal hypertension complicating liver cirrhosis in the patients with pancreatic cancer.