Age/sex: 46-year-old female
Size: 20.5 x 15.9 x 8.2 cm
The specimen consists of a portion of the spleen (S) adjacent to which is a 17 cm tumor in the position of the tail of the pancreas. The tumor consists of innumerable cysts of variable size, most less than 5 mm in diameter. There is no evidence of necrosis or hemorrhage. The patient was a 46-year-old woman who complained of left upper abdominal quadrant pain. A hard mass was palpated on physical examination.
Microcystic serous cystadenoma
This is a relatively uncommon neoplasm that is most often found in the pancreas body or tail. It is often small and causes no symptoms, being discovered during radiologic imaging for a reason unrelated to pancreatic disease. Occasionally, a tumor grows large enough to exert pressure on an adjacent structure and cause discomfort or pain, as with the tumor from this patient. Unlike the much more common pancreatic adenocarcinoma, serous cystadenoma is benign and is often followed by radiologic imaging rather than removed surgically.
Below: Histologic appearance showing the tumor with small cysts (C) on the left; normal pancreas on the right.
Source: Nephron. (2010). Pancreatic serous cystadenoma. Wikimedia Commons. https:// commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Pancreatic_serous_cystadenoma_-_intermed_mag.jpg
