Pancreatic Lymphoepithelial Cysts Diagnosed with Endosonography-guided Fine Needle Aspiration

Abstract

Although lymphoepithelial cysts (LECs) of the pancreas are benign lesions, most of them have been treated with surgical resection due to diagnostic difficulty. We report a 66-year-old woman diagnosed with pancreatic LECs. Abdominal ultrasound revealed two masses in the pancreas, which were not visible on the abdominal computed tomography. In an abdominal magnetic resonance imaging, pancreas lesions showed solid tumors, which revealed a low signal intensity on T1-, moderate high signal intensity on T2 weighted images, and homogeneous delayed enhancement in the portal venous phase. Endosonography (EUS) revealed two hypoechoic round masses measuring 1.5 cm and 4.5 cm in the body and tail of the pancreas, respectively. EUS-guided fine needle aspiration (FNA) revealed squamous cells, amorphous keratinous debris, and lymphocytes. The patient was diagnosed with LECs of the pancreas. For the duration of the follow-up period of two years, imaging studies were unchanged. EUS-FNA is useful in making a definite diagnosis and avoiding unnecessary surgery. This is the first case of pancreatic LECs diagnosed with EUS-FNA in Korea.

Keywords

• Pancreatic cyst
• Pancreas
• Endosonography
• Fine needle aspiration