AN UNUSUAL ASSOCIATION BETWEEN PANCREATIC CANCER AND PURTSCHER-LIKE RETINOPATHY
Purtscher's retinopathy may cause sudden loss of vision of varying severity, secondary to head or chest injury. Its pathophysiology is unclear. Purtscher's-like retinopathy has more attenuated clinical and objective features and can be associated with many non-neoplastic pathologies. Otherwise, an association of this kind of retinopathy with malignancies has been described once in the Literature (multiple myeloma). We present a case report on a unique association between pancreatic cancer and Purtscher-type retinopathy.
Study Type
OBSERVATIONAL
Enrollment
1
1 g. of methylprednisolone in saline solution 250 cc once a day for 5 days, and one eye drops of Diclofenac per eye 3 times a day for 30 days
Eva Intagliata
Catania, Italy
funduscopic examination
At the funduscopic examination the back of the eye showed large yellow spots and retinal hemorrhages in the superficial retina. In the early stages, fluorescein angiography showed hypofluorescence in the area of the yellow-white patches while the late stages showed hyperfluorescence
Time frame: at the onset of symptoms
abdominal CT-scan
CT scan of the abdomen revealed a large mass in the tail of the pancreas with direct extension to the vessels of splenic hilum and splenic vein thrombosis. A secondary invasion of the gastric wall and left adrenal gland was also demonstrated. Percutaneous needle biopsy was performed and histopathology showed moderate to poorly differentiated mucinous pancreatic adenocarcinoma.
Time frame: at the onset of symptoms
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