title: Large acinar cell carcinoma of the pancreas in a patient with elevated serum AFP level.
abstract: A pancreatic carcinoma, associated with elevated serum alpha-fetoprotein level, was resected from a 67-year-old man. The tumor was strongly suggested to be an acinar cell carcinoma of the pancreas, based on the histological findings of the resected specimen. The tumor measured 12 x 10 x 9 cm, and the cut surface was soft, whitish-yellow, focally necrotic, and hemorrhagic. Under a light microscope, the tumor cells were not arranged in a tubular and trabecular pattern, but rather, showed a tendency toward an acinar structure. Immunohistochemically, alpha 1-antitrypsin- and alpha 1-antichymotrypsin-positive reactions were diffusely positive in most of the tumor cells, while staining for chromogranin, neuron-specific enolase, Grimelius, glucagon, insulin, and alpha-fetoprotein was negative in the tumor cells. We report a large acinar cell carcinoma (associated with elevated serum alpha-fetoprotein level), which had been misdiagnosed as hepatocellular carcinoma preoperatively.
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, Kurume University School of Medicine, 67 Asahi-machi, Kurume 830-0011, Japan.
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Eriguchi
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Aoyagi
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hara
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Okuda
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Saito
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Fukuda
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Akashi
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Kutami
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Jimi
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000792:Angiography; D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor / Q000032:analysis*; D018267:Carcinoma, Acinar Cell / Q000097:blood / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000601:surgery; D006528:Carcinoma, Hepatocellular / Q000175:diagnosis; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D006801:Humans; D007813:Laparotomy; D008113:Liver Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000556:secondary; D008297:Male; D010190:Pancreatic Neoplasms / Q000097:blood / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000601:surgery; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed; D000509:alpha-Fetoproteins / Q000032:analysis*
chemical_list: D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor; D000509:alpha-Fetoproteins