Premalignant and Malignant Lesions of the Heterotopic Pancreas in the Esophagus: a Case Report and Review of the Literature

Abstract

Heterotopic pancreas is a congenital pathology of the gastrointestinal tract, particularly rare in the esophagus. Both symptomatology and findings during preoperative examinations are non-specific and therefore do not often lead to an accurate diagnosis, which is usually revealed only by histopathological assessment of a resected specimen. We report an unusual case of a patient suffering from severe dysphagia caused by heterotopic pancreas in the distal esophagus with chronic inflammation and foci of premalignant changes. This article also reviews 14 adult cases of heterotopic pancreas in the esophagus previously reported in the literature, with the aim of determining the clinical features of this disease and possible complications including rare premalignant lesions and malignant transformation. Especially with regard to those complications, we suggest that both symptomatic and incidentally found asymptomatic lesions should be resected.