Misdiagnosis of pancreatic papillary mucinous cystadenocarcinoma: A case report

The morbidity of papillary cystadenocarcinoma of the pancreas is extremely low and the condition is rarely first found as spinal metastases, thus it is often misdiagnosed prior to surgery. The present study reports a case of papillary cystadenocarcinoma with thoracolumbar metastases in a 56-year-old male. The first symptom to occur was backache, however, computed tomography revealed no positive findings. The pain became exacerbated and the patient underwent lumbar and thoracic vertebrae magnetic resonance imaging, which identified abnormal signals. Imaging and pathological examinations were used for the final diagnosis. Due to multiple bone metastases, the patient. the administration of induction chemotherapy was suggested, however, the patient refused. The patient succumbed to the disease in June 2013.