Focal pancreatic parenchymal atrophy could be a precursor of pancreatic cancer.

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: We previously reported that focal pancreatic parenchymal atrophy (FPPA) indicates high-grade pancreatic intraepithelial neoplasia (HG-PanIN) or carcinoma in situ (CIS). Because HG-PanIN progresses into pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC), the relationship between FPPA and PDAC should be investigated.

METHODS

We included 54 patients with PDAC, whose previous computed tomography or magnetic resonance imaging were reviewed. The existence, positional relationship between FPPA and PDAC, and time between FPPA recognition and PDAC diagnosis were all examined. Of the 54 patients, 28 underwent surgery. The remaining 26 patients were histopathologically diagnosed with PDAC using endoscopic ultrasonography-guided fine needle aspiration.

RESULTS

Among the 54 patients included, 49 (83.3 %) had FPPA. The pancreatic head and body were the common sites of FPPA. In all patients with FPPA, PDAC developed near the FPPA, with an average distance of 7.93 mm between the edge of the FPPA and the center of the PDAC. The interval between FPPA recognition and PDAC diagnosis was 35.33 months, which was significantly shorter in the surgical group.

CONCLUSIONS

FPPA could be a precursor of PDAC and suggest the area at risk of PDAC.