Successful conversion surgery after FOLFIRINOX therapy in a patient with advanced pancreatic acinar cell carcinoma with a solitary peritoneal dissemination: A case report

Background: Pancreatic acinar cell carcinoma is rare; it accounts for 1% of all malignant pancreatic exocrine tumors. Although surgical resection is an option for curative treatment, the safety and efficacy of conversion surgery in patients with pancreatic acinar cell carcinoma with metastasis remain unknown. Case: A 67-year-old man with epigastric pain and a pancreatic tumor was referred to our hospital. Computed tomography revealed a large tumor with a maximum diameter of 67 mm at the pancreatic head and a 23-mm mass in the left upper abdominal cavity. Because a definitive diagnosis could not be made based on endoscopic ultrasonography-guided fine needle aspiration biopsy findings, a diagnostic laparoscopy was performed. The tumor in the greater omentum at the left upper abdomen, resected under laparoscopy, was histopathologically diagnosed as pancreatic acinar cell carcinoma. Therefore, the pancreatic tumor was diagnosed as an unresectable pancreatic acinar cell carcinoma with a solitary peritoneal dissemination. The size of the main pancreatic tumor decreased to 15 mm after 18 courses of FOLFIRINOX (5-fluorouracil, leucovorin, irinotecan, and oxaliplatin). Subsequently, the patient underwent conversion surgery, and the initial diagnosis of pancreatic acinar cell carcinoma was confirmed on pathological examination. The patient was discharged 31 days postoperatively, following which he received adjuvant chemotherapy with S-1. No sign of recurrence has been observed for 32 months after surgical resection. Conclusion: FOLFIRINOX may be effective in patients with pancreatic acinar cell carcinoma, and conversion surgery after FOLFIRINOX may be applicable to selective patients.