St. Luke's University Health Network Bethlehem, PA
Brittney Shupp, DO1, Brian Kim, DO1, Melkamu Dessie Adeb, MD1, Pallav Shah, MD1, Lisa Stoll, MD, MPH1, Kimberly Chaput, MD2 1St. Luke's University Health Network, Bethlehem, PA; 2St. Luke University Health Network, Bethleham, PA
Introduction: Pancreatic cancer is an aggressive disease that commonly metastasizes to the liver, lung, and peritoneum. Cutaneous metastasis is a rare occurrence with an incidence of only 2.0%. We present a case of metastatic pancreatic adenocarcinoma primarily presenting as a cutaneous nodule.
Case Description/Methods: A 50-year-old male was undergoing outpatient evaluation for a raised, left scalp lesion along with neck nodules. Associated symptoms included an unintentional 30lb weight loss. Outpatient CT soft tissue neck revealed numerous necrotic lateral neck lymph nodes, lytic lesion with epidural soft tissue extension at C2-4, and occlusion/thrombosis of the left subclavian, brachiocephalic, and left internal jugular veins. Given these findings, the patient was referred to the Emergency Department (ED).
At time of ED arrival, vital signs were stable along with initial laboratory values. CTA PE study showed no pulmonary embolism but revealed numerous pulmonary and bilateral adrenal nodules, multifocal liver and osseous lesions, and widespread lymphadenopathy. Additionally, CT head demonstrated a left scalp soft tissue lesion. Follow up CT abdomen/pelvis revealed a 2.8 x 2.2 x 1.8 cm ill-defined pancreatic lesion and confirmed widespread metastasis including to the muscles. Additional testing revealed elevated cancer markers with Cancer antigen 19-9 (CA 19-9) of 5418 U/mL and carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) of 63.8 ng/mL. Pathology from initial scalp lesion biopsy showed fragments of necrotic dermis with small foci of poorly differentiated carcinoma. Biopsies of the right and left neck masses revealed poorly differentiated adenocarcinoma of uncertain primary. Therefore, liver biopsy was performed and confirmed non-small cell carcinoma of pancreatobiliary origin. Further imaging to determine treatment course discovered intracranial metastasis and cervical spine disease resulting in cord compression. Ultimately, the patient underwent 4 out of 10 fractions of palliative radiation to the cervical spine but passed away after transitioning to comfort care one month after diagnosis.
Discussion: There are less than 25 documented cases of pancreatic cancer with cutaneous involvement; however, it is even more rare that cutaneous involvement prompts initial diagnosis. The umbilicus is the most common site of cutaneous involvement and is referred to as the Sister Mary Joseph Nodule. Involvement of the soft tissue of the scalp and neck is much less common and poorly documented making this case extremely unique.
Figure: Image 1: Axial contrast enhanced CT of the abdomen shows a 2.8 cm ill-defined hypoattenuating mass in the pancreatic tail (A) with multifocal metastatic liver lesions and bilateral adrenal metastasis (B). Axial CT image of the pelvis shows a metastatic lesion in the right rectus femoris muscle (C). On liver biopsy, H&E, 40X,(S21-41666) revealed high grade carcinoma with vesiculated nuclei, prominent nucleoli (D), CA 19-9 IHC 20X diffuse positivity in tumor cells (E) and CK AE1/3 IHC, 20X, diffusely positivee for pancytokeratin in tumor cells confirming carcinoma (F). Axial CT of the head shows a 2.4 cm nodular left parietal scalp soft tissue lesion (G) which was also seen on clinical examination (H). Biopsy of the scalp lesion (H&E, 40X) demonstrated high grade carcinoma with vesiculated nuclei, prominent nucleoli and mitoses (I), histologically similar to liver biopsy findings.
Disclosures:
Brittney Shupp indicated no relevant financial relationships.
Brian Kim indicated no relevant financial relationships.
Melkamu Dessie Adeb indicated no relevant financial relationships.
Pallav Shah indicated no relevant financial relationships.
Lisa Stoll indicated no relevant financial relationships.
Kimberly Chaput indicated no relevant financial relationships.
Brittney Shupp, DO1, Brian Kim, DO1, Melkamu Dessie Adeb, MD1, Pallav Shah, MD1, Lisa Stoll, MD, MPH1, Kimberly Chaput, MD2. D0026 - Things Are Not Always What They Seem: A Rare Case of Pancreatic Carcinoma Manifesting Through Cutaneous Metastasis, ACG 2022 Annual Scientific Meeting Abstracts. Charlotte, NC: American College of Gastroenterology.
