Solitary upper thoracic vertebral metastasis as an initial presentation of pancreatic cancer: A case report

Alpantaki,Kalliopi; Koutserimpas,Christos; Milaki,Kalliopi; Spanakis,Konstantinos; Datseri,Galateia; Raptis,Konstantinos; Samonis,George

doi:10.3892/mco.2020.2199

February-2021 Volume 14 Issue 2

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February-2021 Volume 14 Issue 2

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Case Report Open Access

Solitary upper thoracic vertebral metastasis as an initial presentation of pancreatic cancer: A case report

Authors:
- Kalliopi Alpantaki
- Christos Koutserimpas
- Kalliopi Milaki
- Konstantinos Spanakis
- Galateia Datseri
- Konstantinos Raptis
- George Samonis
View Affiliations / Copyright

Affiliations: Department of Orthopaedics and Traumatology, ‘Venizeleion’ General Hospital of Heraklion, Crete 17121, Greece, Department of Orthopaedics and Traumatology, ‘251’ Hellenic Air Force General Hospital of Athens, Athens 11525, Greece, Second Department of Internal Medicine, ‘Venizeleion’ General Hospital of Heraklion, Crete 17121, Greece, Department of Radiology, University Hospital of Heraklion, Crete 71500, Greece, Department of Pathology, ‘Venizeleion’ General Hospital of Heraklion, Crete 17121, Greece, Department of Internal Medicine, University Hospital of Heraklion, Crete 71500, Greece

Copyright: © Alpantaki et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of Creative Commons Attribution License.
Article Number: 37
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Published online on: December 24, 2020

https://doi.org/10.3892/mco.2020.2199
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Abstract

The spine represents an unusual site of pancreatic metastatic disease, while the exact incidence of this metastatic lesion is unclear. An extremely rare case of bone painful blastic metastatic lesion at the fourth thoracic vertebra, as a first manifestation of pancreatic cancer, is reported in the current study. A 54‑year-old man was complaining of upper thoracic spinal pain that lasted the previous 4 months. A CT scan revealed a solitary, sclerotic, bone lesion of the body of the fourth thoracic (T4) vertebra, indicating a benign lesion. A consequent MRI scan of the thoracic spine confirmed the sclerotic lesion along with additional findings, such as bone marrow edema of the vertebra and a paraspinal and epidural soft tissue mass. Biopsy of the T4 vertebra lesion revealed metastatic lesion of pancreatic origin. A CT scan of the upper abdomen confirmed the diagnosis. This is a rare case, since the only initial symptom of pancreatic cancer was pain of the upper spine, while the first imaging was misleading, indicating a lesion that was benign in nature.

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Journals

International Journal of Molecular Medicine

International Journal of Oncology

Molecular Medicine Reports

Oncology Reports

Experimental and Therapeutic Medicine

Oncology Letters

Biomedical Reports

Molecular and Clinical Oncology

World Academy of Sciences Journal

International Journal of Functional Nutrition

International Journal of Epigenetics

Medicine International

Solitary upper thoracic vertebral metastasis as an initial presentation of pancreatic cancer: A case report

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