PICTURES IN DIGESTIVE PATHOLOGY

 

Pancreas Burkitt primary lymphoma in pediatric age

 

 

João Pedro Araújo¹, Carlos Sampaio-Macedo¹ and Luciana Sousa²

¹Department of Radiology. Centro Hospitalar do Porto. Porto, Portugal.
²Department of Radiology. Grupo Trofa Saúde. Porto, Portugal

 

 

Case report

We present the case of an eight-year-old boy admitted with non-specific abdominal pain. An analytic study revealed a high level of lipase and amylase.

Ultrasound, abdominal computerized tomography (CT) (Fig. 1), and abdominal magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) (Fig. 2) were performed.

 

 

 

The imaging findings are suggestive of a pancreatic tumor which is an extremely rare entity in children (1). The bifocality and the absence of adenopathies was suggestive of a primary lymphoma. Primary pancreatic lymphoma is less common than secondary lymphomatous involvement. The biopsy identified Burkitt lymphoma.

 

Discussion

There are a few cases of pancreatic Burkitt lymphoma described in the literature (2). The pancreatic involvement can be considered as a solitary lesion, multiple lesions, or diffuse infiltration of the gland (3). Alterations of the peripancreatic plans are also frequently reported, and can be a consequence of secondary pancreatitis or pancreatitis related to tumor lysis syndrome (2).

 

References

1. Nasher Omar, Nigel J Hall, Neil J Sebire, et al. Pancreatic tumors in children: Diagnosis, treatment and outcome. Pediatr Surg Int 2015; 31(9):831-5. DOI:10.1007/s00383-015-3727-7.         [ Links ]

2. Koca T, Aslan N, Dereci S, et al. Burkitt lymphoma with unusual presentation: Acute pancreatitis. Pediatr Int 201557(4):775-7. DOI: 10.1111/ped.12640.         [ Links ]

3. Chung EM, Travis MD, Conran RM. Pancreatic tumors in children: Radiologic-pathologic correlation. RadioGraphics 2006;26(4):1211-38. DOI:10.1148/rg.264065012.         [ Links ]