Two rare cases of pancreatic adenosquamous carcinoma: A review of the literature with focus on radiologic findings

Abstract

Pancreatic adenosquamous carcinoma (PASC) is a rare, aggressive subtype of pancreatic tumor with a poor prognostic outlook compared to the much more common pancreatic adenocarcinoma. Here we present two cases of the rare PASC and analyze the radiologic findings on computed tomography (CT) and 18F- fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (FDG-PET).Both cases involve 62-year-old women presenting with abdominal pain, nausea, and vomiting who on imaging were found to have infiltrating lobular pancreatic masses with ring enhancement on CT and peripheral hypermetabolism with central necrosis on FDG-PET. Location in the pancreas and involvement of adjacent structures differed in the two cases, resulting in varying progressive clinical manifestations.PASC is a rare subtype of pancreatic cancer with nonspecific imaging findings. Here we presented two cases of PASC supporting previously reported imaging findings suggestive of PASC with additional FDG-PET manifestations and SUV levels, which only few reports have previously described. Keywords: Pancreatic adenosquamous carcinoma, CT, FDG-PET