Lymphoepithelial cyst of the pancreas

Abstract

We experienced a rare case of lymphoepithelial cyst of pancreas. The patient was a 68-year-old man in whom a cystic lesion in the pancreas was detected when he was admitted for chronic renal failure. On ultrasonography, we detected a cystic lesion, 3 cm in diameter, with a septum, in head and body of the pancreas. On both computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging, the cystic lesion did not show solid components. Endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography showed no abnormality in the pancreatic duct and did not detect the cystic lesion. Although the lesion showed no evidence of malignancy on the images, we could not rule out malignancy, since high levels of carcinoembryonic antigen and carbohydrate antigen 19-9 were detected. We therefore performed a pancreatoduodenectomy. In the resected specimen, the lesion was a well-circumscribed and multilocular cyst that contained yellowish-white keratinous material and had no solid components. Histologically, the cyst wall was composed of mature keratinizing squamous epithelium and lymphoid tissue; it was diagnosed as a benign lymphoepithelial cyst of the pancreas.