title: Lymphoepithelial cysts of the pancreas: the use of endoscopic ultrasound-guided fine-needle aspiration in diagnosis.
abstract: Lymphoepithelial cysts (LECs) are rare non-neoplastic lesions that can appear as a complex cyst or a mass in the pancreas. Cytology from endoscopic ultrasound-guided fine-needle aspiration (EUS-FNA) can be helpful in making a diagnosis with the aim of avoiding unnecessary surgical resection. A case involving a 51-year-old woman with lower abdominal pain who was found to have a multiloculated cystic lesion at the junction of the pancreatic body and tail is described. Cytology from EUS-FNA was consistent with a pancreatic LEC. The lesion was managed conservatively and follow-up imaging of the cyst over the following two years was unchanged. The patient remains clinically well. Cytology from EUS-FNA can help distinguish LECs from cystic neoplasms, thus preventing radical surgical resection of this benign pancreatic cyst.
authors.affiliation: Division of General Internal Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia.
authors.forename: Zamil
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Karim
authors.forename: Blair
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Walker
authors.forename: Eric
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Lam
mesh_terms: D015746:Abdominal Pain / Q000209:etiology; D044963:Biopsy, Fine-Needle; D019160:Endosonography; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008875:Middle Aged; D010181:Pancreatic Cyst / Q000150:complications / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology*