Case Report
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World J Gastroenterol. Dec 7, 2014; 20(45): 17247-17253
Published online Dec 7, 2014. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v20.i45.17247
Clinical and radiological feature of lymphoepithelial cyst of the pancreas
Hirofumi Terakawa, Isamu Makino, Hisatoshi Nakagawara, Tomoharu Miyashita, Hidehiro Tajima, Hirohisa Kitagawa, Takashi Fujimura, Dai Inoue, Kazuto Kozaka, Toshifumi Gabata, Tetsuo Ohta
Hirofumi Terakawa, Isamu Makino, Hisatoshi Nakagawara, Tomoharu Miyashita, Hidehiro Tajima, Hirohisa Kitagawa, Takashi Fujimura, Tetsuo Ohta, Department of Gastroenterologic surgery, Graduate School of Medical Science, Kanazawa University, Kanazawa 920-8641, Japan
Dai Inoue, Kazuto Kozaka, Toshifumi Gabata, Department of Radiology, Graduate School of Medical Science, Kanazawa University, Kanazawa 920-8641, Japan
Author contributions: Terakawa H and Makino I contributed equally to this work; Makino I, Nakagawara H, Miyashita T, Tajima H, Kitagawa H, Fujimura T and Ohta T performed surgery; Makino I, Nakagawara H and Kitagawa H managed postoperative treatment; Inoue D, Kozaka K and Gabata T diagnosed radiologically; Terakawa H and Makino I wrote the paper.
Correspondence to: Hirofumi Terakawa, MD, Department of Gastroenterologic Surgery, Graduate School of Medical Science, Kanazawa University, 13-1 Takara-machi, Kanazawa 920-8641, Japan. hirofumi_terakawa@yahoo.co.jp
Telephone: +81-76-2652362 Fax: +81-76-2344260
Received: March 25, 2014
Revised: June 15, 2014
Accepted: July 29, 2014
Published online: December 7, 2014
Abstract

A lymphoepithelial cyst (LEC) of the pancreas is a rare benign lesion. Because patients with LEC of the pancreas have a good prognosis, it is important that these lesions are accurately differentiated from other more aggressive pancreatic neoplasms for an appropriate treatment strategy. Previous studies have reported that a definitive diagnosis of LEC often cannot be obtained based solely on the findings of preoperative imaging (e.g., Computed tomography or Magnetic resonance imaging). In this study, we reviewed four cases of pancreatic LECs to investigate the feature of LECs. We reviewed these cases with regard to symptoms, imaging findings, surgical procedures, and other clinical factors. We found that LEC was associated with unique characteristics on imaging findings. A preoperative diagnosis of LEC may be possible by comprehensively evaluating its clinical and imaging findings.

Keywords: Lymphoepithelial cyst, Preoperative diagnosis, Magnetic resonance imaging

Core tip: A lymphoepithelial cyst of the pancreas is a rare benign lesion. In this study, we reviewed four cases of pancreatic lymphoepithelial cyst (LECs) to investigate the feature of LECs. We found that LEC was associated with unique characteristics on imaging findings. A preoperative diagnosis of LEC may be possible by comprehensively evaluating its clinical and imaging findings.