Co-existence of peri-ampullary carcinoma with peripancreatic tuberculous lymphadenopathy
Desai, C.S.; Lala, M.; Joshi, A.; Abraham, P.; Desai, D.; Deshpande, R.B.; Shah, S.R.
Jop Journal of the Pancreas 5(3): 145-147
2004
ISSN/ISBN: 1590-8577 PMID: 15138336 Document Number: 567927
Pancreatic tuberculosis and peripancreatic tuberculous lymphadenitis are rare, mimicking various pathologies of the pancreas. The coexistence of peri-ampullary malignancy with peripancreatic tuberculous lymphadenitis has not been reported. We present the case of a young woman who had been operated on with a preoperative diagnosis of peri-ampullary adenocarcinoma in whom a frozen section of regional lymph nodes revealed tuberculosis. The final pathology confirmed the co-existence of tuberculosis with malignancy. The patient made an uneventful recovery. In countries with high endemicity for tuberculosis, the co-existence of malignancy and tuberculosis should be considered and resection, which is the only chance for cure, should not be abandoned due to observations based solely on frozen sections.