Solid pancreatic masses:What’s hidden beneath?Insights into rare pancreatic lesions

The diagnostic approach to solid pancreatic masses has significantly evolved from the era when a focal pancreatic mass was almost synonymous to pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma,to a wide spectrum of pancreatic lesions,some of which have good prognosis.With the advent of advanced diagnostic tools,particularly refined imaging and tissue acquisition techniques,a broader spectrum of differential diagnoses has been recognized,encompassing conditions ranging from neuroendocrine tumors or inflammatory masses,to rare entities like metastatic clear cell sarcoma or solitary fibrous tumors.We herein discuss case reports of some rare pancreatic lesions,which were diagnosed by combining clinical and imaging features and endoscopic ultrasound-guided tissue sampling and confirmed on surgical specimens.Further reports on these rare pancreatic tumors will contribute to a better understanding of their pathogenesis and effective management.

Endoscopic ultrasound elastography for evaluation of lymph nodes and pancreatic masses:A multicenter study

AIM:To evaluate the ability of endoscopic ultrasound(EUS) elastography to distinguish benign from malignant pancreatic masses and lymph nodes.METHODS:A multicenter study was conducted and included 222 patients who underwent EUS examination with assessment of a pancreatic mass(n=121) or lymph node(n=101).The classification as benign or malignant,based on the real time elastography pattern,was compared with the classif ication based on the B-mode EUS images and with the fi nal diagnosis obtained by EUS-guided fi ne needle aspiration(EUS-FNA) and/or by surgical pathology.An interobserver study was performed.RESULTS:The sensitivity and specificity of EUS elastography to differentiate benign from malignant pancreatic lesions are 92.3% and 80.0%,respectively,compared to 92.3% and 68.9%,respectively,for the conventional B-mode images.The sensitivity and specificity of EUS elastography to differentiate benign from malignant lymph nodes was 91.8% and 82.5%,respectively,compared to 78.6% and 50.0%,respectively,for the B-mode images.The kappa coefficient was 0.785 for the pancreatic masses and 0.657 for the lymph nodes.CONCLUSION:EUS elastography is superior compared to conventional B-mode imaging and appears to be able to distinguish benign from malignant pancreatic masses and lymph nodes with a high sensitivity,specificity and accuracy.It might be reserved as a second line examination to help characterise pancreatic masses after negative EUS-FNA and might increase the yield of EUS-FNA for lymph nodes.

Endoscopic ultrasound-guided techniques for diagnosing pancreatic mass lesions: Can we do better?

The diagnostic approach to a possible pancreatic mass lesion relies first upon various non-invasive imaging modalities, including computed tomography, ultrasound, and magnetic resonance imaging techniques. Once a suspect lesion has been identified, tissue acquisition for characterization of the lesion is often paramount in developing an individualized therapeutic approach. Given the high prevalence and mortality associated with pancreatic cancer, an ideal approach to diagnosing pancreatic mass lesions would be safe, highly sensitive, and reproducible across various practice settings. Tools, in addition to radiologic imaging, currently employed in the initial evaluation of a patient with a pancreatic mass lesion include serum tumor markers, endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography, and endoscopic ultrasound-guided fine needle aspiration(EUS-FNA). EUS-FNA has grown to become the gold standard in tissue diagnosis of pancreatic lesions.

The efficacy of rapid on-site evaluation during endoscopic ultrasound-guided fine needle aspiration of pancreatic masses

Background:Endoscopic ultrasound(EUS)-guided fine needle aspiration(FNA)has become the preferred method to diagnose pancreatic masses due to its minimally invasive approach and diagnostic accuracy.Many studies have shown that rapid on-site evaluation(ROSE)improves diagnostic yield by 10–30%;however,more recent studies have demonstrated effective diagnostic accuracy rates without ROSE.Our study aims to examine whether the current standard of performing ROSE after each FNA pass adds diagnostic value during EUS-guided FNA of pancreatic masses.Methods:We conducted a retrospective case series on patients who underwent EUS-guided FNA of pancreatic masses between February 2011 and October 2014.All cases were performed by one of three endoscopists at Emory University Hospital.Patient demographics,radiologic details of pancreatic masses and pathology reports of the biopsied pancreatic masses were examined.Results:A total of 184 procedures performed in 171 patients were reviewed.The final pathology reports of the biopsied pancreatic masses showed 128(70%)with confirmed malignancy.Only 64(50%)of these 128 cases initially showed malignant cells during ROSE.Among these 64 cases,23%required 5 or more FNA passes to first detect malignant cells.Conclusions:The use of ROSE during EUS-guided FNA of pancreatic masses may increase the diagnostic yield,since malignant cells were often detected during later FNA passes that would otherwise be missed if tissue sampling stopped prematurely.In addition,sample preparation for ROSE may be suboptimal,since malignant cells were only detected in 50%of cases.

Pancreatic carcinoma coexisting with chronic pancreatitis versus tumor-forming pancreatitis:Diagnostic utility of the time-signal intensity curve from dynamic contrast-enhanced MR imaging

AIM: To evaluate the ability of the time-signal intensity curve (TIC) of the pancreas obtained from dynamic contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) for differentiation of focal pancreatic masses, especially pancreatic carcinoma coexisting with chronic pancreatitis and tumor-forming pancreatitis. METHODS: Forty-eight consecutive patients who underwent surgery for a focal pancreatic mass, including pancreatic ductal carcinoma (n = 33), tumor-forming pancreatitis (n = 8), and islet cell tumor (n = 7), were reviewed. Five pancreatic carcinomas coexisted with longstanding chronic pancreatitis. The pancreatic TICs were obtained from the pancreatic mass and the pancreatic parenchyma both proximal and distal to the mass lesion in each patient, prior to surgery, and were classified into 4 types according to the time to a peak: 25 s and 1, 2, and 3 min after the bolus injection of contrast material, namely, type-Ⅰ, Ⅱ, Ⅲ, and Ⅳ, respectively, and were then compared to the corresponding histological pancreatic conditions. RESULTS: Pancreatic carcinomas demonstrated type-Ⅲ (n = 13) or Ⅳ (n = 20) TIC. Tumor-forming pancreatitis showed type-Ⅱ (n = 5) or Ⅲ (n = 3) TIC. All islet cell tumors revealed type-Ⅰ. The type-Ⅳ TIC was only recognized in pancreatic carcinoma, and the TIC of carcinoma always depicted the slowest rise to a peak among the 3 pancreatic TICs measured in each patient, even in patients with chronic pancreatitis.CONCLUSION: Pancreatic TIC from dynamic MRI provides reliable information for distinguishing pancreatic carcinoma from other pancreatic masses, and may enable us to avoid unnecessary pancreatic surgery and delays in making a correct diagnosis of pancreatic carcinoma, especially, in patients with longstanding chronic pancreatitis.

Isolated pancreatic granulocytic sarcoma: A case report and review of the literature

Granulocytic sarcoma (GS) is an extramedullary tumor mass consisting of immature myeloid cells. Isolated pancreatic granulocyte sarcoma is extremely rare. We report a very unusual pancreatic granulocytic sarcoma in a patient without acute myeloid leukemia. The patient presented with acute epigastric pain because of splenic infarction due to a mass consisting of myeloblasts in the pancreatic tail. The patients underwent splenectomy and distal pancreatectomy. Pathology and immunohistochemistry suggested a GS. Despite local surgery, an isolated tumor recurred 2 mo after operation and the patient died 3 mo after removal of the tumor. Only 7 reported cases of pancreatic GS were identified in the literature and the mass was located in the pancreatic head. This is the first report of GS in the pancreatic tail with splenic infarction.

Role of endoscopic ultrasound in the molecular diagnosis of pancreatic cancer

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma remains one of the most deadly types of tumor. Endoscopic ultrasoundguided fine-needle aspiration(EUS-FNA) is a safe, cost-effective, and accurate technique for evaluating and staging pancreatic tumors. However, EUS-FNA may be inconclusive or doubtful in up to 20% of cases. This review underlines the clinical interest of the molecular analysis of samples obtained by EUS-FNA in assessing diagnosis or prognosis of pancreatic cancer, especially in locally advanced tumors. On EUS-FNA materials DNA, mRNA and miRNA can be extracted, amplified, quantified and subjected to methylation assay. Kras mutation assay, improves diagnosis of pancreatic cancer. When facing to clinical and radiological presentations of pseudo-tumorous chronic pancreatitis, wildtype Kras is evocative of benignity. Conversely, in front of a pancreatic mass suspected of malignancy, a mutated Kras is highly evocative of pancreatic adenocarci-noma. This strategy can reduce false-negative diagnoses, avoids the delay of making decisions and reduces loss of surgical resectability. Similar approaches are conducted using analysis of miRNA expression as well as Mucin or markers of invasion(S100P, S100A6, PLAT or PLAU). Beyond the diagnosis approach, the prediction of response to treatment can be also investigated form biomarkers expression within EUS-FNA materials.

Proteome-based biomarkers in pancreatic cancer

Pancreatic cancer,as a highly malignant cancer and the fourth cause of cancer-related death in world,is characterized by dismal prognosis,due to rapid disease progression,highly invasive tumour phenotype,and resistance to chemotherapy.Despite significant advances in treatment of the disease during the past decade,the survival rate is little improved.A contributory factor to the poor outcome is the lack of appropriate sensitive and specific biomarkers for early diagnosis.Furthermore,biomarkers for targeting,directing and assessing therapeutic intervention,as well as for detection of residual or recurrent cancer are also needed.Thus,the identification of adequate biomarkers in pancreatic cancer is of extreme importance.Recently,accompanying the development of proteomic technology and devices,more and more potential biomarkers have appeared and are being reported.In this review,we provide an overview of the role of proteome-based biomarkers in pancreatic cancer,including tissue,serum,juice,urine and cell lines.We also discuss the possible mechanism and prospects in the future.That information hopefully might be helpful for further research in the field.

Adult pancreatoblastoma: Current concepts in pathology

Adult pancreatoblastoma is an exceptionally rare malignant tumour of the pancreas that mimics other solid cellular neoplasms of the pancreas,which may pose diagnostic difficulties.Because of its rarity,little is known about its clinical and pathologic features.This article reviews the clinical and pathologic features of pancreatoblastoma in adults including differential diagnosis,treatment,and follow-up.Although pancreatoblastoma commonly occurs in childhood,there have now been more than 70 adult pancreatoblastomas described in the literature.There is a slight male predominance.There are no symptoms unique to pancreatoblastomas and adult patients are frequently symptomatic.The most common presenting symptom is abdominal pain.Grossly,the tumours are often large and well-circumscribed.Microscopically,pancreatoblastomas are composed of neoplastic cells with predominantly acinar differentiation and characteristic squamoid nests.These tumours are positive for trypsin,chymotrypsin,lipase,and BCL10.Loss of heterozygosity on chromosome 11p is the most common molecular alteration in pancreatoblastomas.Adult pancreatoblastomas are aggressive tumours with frequent local invasion,recurrence,and distant metastasis.Treatment consists of surgical resection.Chemotherapy and radiotherapy may have a role in the treatment of recurrent,residual,unresectable,and metastatic disease.It is important to distinguish pancreatoblastomas from morphological mimics such as acinar cell carcinomas,solid pseudopapillary neoplasms,and pancreatic neuroendocrine neoplasms.

Simultaneous endoscopic ultrasound fine needle aspiration and endoscopic retrograde cholangio-pancreatography:Evaluation of safety

AIM: To investigate the rate of complications of endoscopic retrograde cholangio-pancreatography (ERCP) performed immediately after endoscopic ultrasound fine needle aspiration (EUS-FNA) in a large series of patients. METHODS: Patients with the following conditions were considered candidates for EUS-FNA and ERCP: diagnosis of locally advanced or metastatic pancreatic lesion not eligible for surgery, and patients with pancreatic lesion of unknown nature causing jaundice. Data were prospectively collected on the following parameters: indication for FNA, EUS findings, pathological diagnosis, procedure duration of EUS-FNA and combined EUS-FNA and ERCP, and immediate and late complications. RESULTS: From January 2004 to October 2006, 72 patients were deemed eligible for combined EUS and ERCP. In 25/72 EUS-FNA was performed to obtain a pathology diagnosis of lesions causing biliary obstruction, and ERCP sequentially performed to drain the biliary system. No immediate complications occurred except for two mild bleeding episodes post sphincterotomy. No late complications were recorded except for one patient who experienced fever, promptly recovered with antibiotic therapy. CONCLUSION: Simultaneous approach appears to be feasible and safe. When possible, this can be considered the reference standard to avoid double sedation and reduce duration of the procedure and hospital stay.

Is there a difference between 19G core biopsy needle and 22G core biopsy needle in diagnosing the correct etiology?——A meta-analysis and systematic review

AIM To compare the accuracy of endoscopic ultra-sonography(EUS) 19 G core biopsies and 22 G core biopsies in diagnosing the correct etiology for a solid mass.METHODS Articles were searched in Medline, Pub Med, and Ovid journals. Pooling was conducted by both fixed and random effects models. RESULTS Initial search identified 4460 reference articles for 19 G and 22 G, of these 670 relevant articles were selected and reviewed. Data was extracted from 6 studies for 19G(n = 289) and 16 studies for 22G(n = 592) which met the inclusion criteria. EUS 19 G core biopsies had a pooled sensitivity of 91.6%(95%CI: 87.1-95.0) and pooled specificity of 95.9%(95%CI: 88.6-99.2), whereas EUS 22 G had a pooled sensitivity of 83.3%(95%CI: 79.7-86.6) and pooled specificity of 64.3%(95%CI: 54.7-73.1). The positive likelihood ratio of EUS 19 G core biopsies was 9.08(95%CI: 1.12-73.66) and EUS 22 G core biopsies was 1.99(95%CI: 1.09-3.66).The negative likelihood ratio of EUS 19 G core biopsies was 0.12(95%CI: 0.07-0.24) and EUS 22 G core biopsies was 0.25(95%CI: 0.14-0.41). The diagnostic odds ratio was 84.74(95%CI: 18.31-392.26) for 19 G core biopsies and 10.55(95% CI: 3.29-33.87) for 22 G needles. CONCLUSION EUS 19 G core biopsies have an excellent diagnostic value and seem to be better than EUS 22 G biopsies in detecting the correct etiology for a solid mass.