Clear Cell Carcinoma of Exocrine Pancreas

Abstract

Metastatic clear cell carcinomas are relatively common from primary tumors arising in the kidney, female genital tract, adrenal cortex, and lung, but they rarely occur from primary tumors of the pancreas. We report a case of metastatic pancreatic tumor with marked clear cell changes in a 46-year-old white man presenting with a pseudocyst of the pancreas. At laparotomy, there was a hard area in the head of the pancreas and another hard nodule was present in the omentum. The histologic and immunohistochemical test of the excised omental nodule exhibited features consistent with clear cell carcinoma from pancreatic primary. To our knowledge, this is the first report of a metastatic clear cell pancreatic tumor with such an unusual presentation.

Primary Clear Cell Carcinoma of the Pancreas: A Systematic Review

“…More cases followed thereafter, and Ray and colleagues described the case of a 46-year-old man who presented for a pseudocyst removal after suffering from pancreatitis [ 19 ]. A hard pancreatic mass and a 14-cm omental mass were sent for pathology.…”

“…The tumor can arise from the body [ 11 - 12 , 16 ], head [ 13 , 15 , 18 - 20 , 30 ], tail [ 17 , 23 - 25 ], or even the neck of the pancreas [ 27 ]. There are other cases that presented with metastasis at diagnosis [ 11 - 12 , 19 , 23 - 25 , 27 ]. Most of the authors have described treating CCCP in the same manner as PDAC would have been treated in each time period.…”