Severe acute necrotizing pancreatitis with a large pancreatic pseudocyst caused by pancreatic head cancer

Abstract

A 60 year old man was referred to our hospital for further treatment of acute severe necrotizing pancreatitis. He was readmitted because of a growing pancreatic pseudocyst 2 months after discharge. We could not detect the pancreatic head mass by abdominal CT scan or endoscopic ultrasonography. Cystgastrostomy was performed for the pancreatic pseudocyst. Six months after operation, a pancreatic head mass 40mm in size with multiple liver tumors was detected by abdominal CT scan. The patient was diagnosed as having pancreatic head cancer with multiple liver metastases and died 9 months after the operation. Acute severe necrotizing pancreatitis caused by pancreatic cancer is very rare. The cause of acute severe pancreatitis should be identified because pancreatic cancer can also be a cause of severe pancreatitis.