Mixed acinar-endocrine carcinomas of the pancreas: Case report and literature review

Acinar cell carcinoma (ACC) of the pancreas is a rare primary tumour of the pancreas with poor prognosis. ACC represent less than 1% of all exocrine tumours of the pancreas. There are no established criteria to differentiate acinar cell carcinomas from non-functioning neuroendocrine tumours or other malignant exocrine tumours by conventional histological examination. In recent years, some researchers have reported an unusual neoplasm called mixed acinar-endocrine carcinoma of the pancreas (MAEC) since this entity was first reported in 1982. Until now, there have been less than 20 cases of MAEC reported in the English literature. We report here a case of mixed acinar-endocrine carcinoma diagnosed and treated in our department and it is the first case of mixed acinar-endocrine carcinoma ever reported in China.