A case of pancreatic carcinosarcoma detected on PET/CT.

Primary pancreatic carcinosarcoma is a rare and malignant neoplasm composed of a mixture of sarcomatous and carcinomatous elements. With fewer than forty cases ever reported, the recognition of this rare phenomenon can be difficult. In the present case, a 73-year-old woman with pancreatitis underwent computed tomography which revealed wall-off pancreatic necrosis. Following initial and delayed fluorine-18-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography/computed tomography (F-FDG PET/CT) revealed high uptake of tracer in pancreatic mass, endoscopic biopsy revealed carcinosarcoma. The patient underwent laparoscopic pancreato-caudal resection and was confirmed to have pancreatic carcinosarcoma on microscopic evaluation. The case shows the importance of PET/CT on the early diagnosis in pancreatic mass, and suggests pancreatic carcinosarcoma should be considered as a possible differential diagnosis, which can hasten treatment and improve patient outcomes.