Solitary true cyst of the pancreas in adults. A report of two cases

Abstract

Context: Solitary true cysts of the pancreas in adults are extremely rare and only few cases have been reported in the literature. The etiology and natural history of these lesions remain unknown and treatment is not standardized. We describe two additional resected cases.

Case reports: The first patient was a young woman with an incidental 3 cm cyst located in the pancreatic head who underwent enucleation. The second patient was a young woman with a large 8 cm symptomatic cyst located in the pancreatic tail who underwent a laparoscopic spleen-preserving distal pancreatectomy. Histological examination revealed fibrous walls lined by a monolayer of cuboidal epithelium in both cases.

Conclusions: A preoperative work-up alone does not always allow an accurate diagnosis, but it is useful in determining lesion characteristics and guiding therapeutic decision making. When surgery is indicated, a limited resection is warranted in most cases.