Solid and pseudopapillary tumor of the pancreas in Saudi patients : clinicopathological and immunohistochemical evaluation

Abstract EN

Solid pseudopapillary tumor of the pancreas is a rare lowgrade malignancy that has distinct clinicopathological features.

It occurs at a young age and almost exclusively in females.

Five patients with this rare pancreatic neoplasm excised at two referral hospitals in the western province of Saudi Arabia ; King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Center and King Abdulaziz University Hospital, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, between 2001 and 2006.

The clinical and pathological findings were reviewed.

A specific panel of immunohistochemistry analysis was performed.

All five patients were females whose ages ranged between 18 and 23 years.

Three patients presented with abdominal pain / discomfort and two patients with abdominal mass.

The tumor size ranged between 6 and 12 cm.

All five cases were positive for vimentin, CD56, CD10, neuron-specific enolase and beta catenin.

All patients were treated surgically and all of them are in good health with a follow–up period between 1-4 years.

Solid pseudopapillary tumor of the pancreas should be considered in the differential diagnosis of any solid or partly cystic pancreatic mass, particularly in young females.

Pathologists should be aware of the classic morphological features of solid pseudopapillary tumor of the pancreas.

Adequate surgical intervention is associated with an excellent prognosis.