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Ectopic pancreas is a relatively rare condition that only occasionally causes the development of symptoms. This report presents a case of ectopic pancreas presenting as an inflammatory mass that formed in the gastric wall, which was successfully treated by surgical resection. A 32-year-old female was admitted due to a 3-year history of recurrent episodes of upper abdominal pain. Contrast-enhanced computed tomography showed an irregularly enhanced mass of heterogeneous density in the gastric antrum. Gastroscopy revealed a submucosally elevated mass with a central umbilication in the gastric antrum. These studies indicated the presence of a 3-cm ectopic pancreas associated with inflammatory changes. The patient underwent laparoscopic local resection of the stomach. Microscopic examination of the lesion revealed heterogenic pancreatic tissue containing islets, dilated pancreatic ducts, and massive fibrosis in the gastric wall, with acinar atrophy and inflammatory cell infiltration. These findings indicated the formation of an inflammatory mass in the ectopic pancreas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Few studies have investigated whether the Glasgow Prognostic Score (GPS), an inflammation-based prognostic score measured before resection of colorectal liver metastasis (CRLM), can predict postoperative survival. Patients and Methods: Sixty-three consecutive patients who underwent curative resection for CRLM were investigated. GPS was calculated on the basis of admission data as follows: patients with both an elevated C-reactive protein (>10 mg/l) and hypoalbuminemia (<35 g/l) were allocated a GPS score of 2. Patients in whom only one of these biochemical abnormalities was present were allocated a GPS score of 1, and patients with a normal C-reactive protein and albumin were allocated a score of 0. Results: Significant factors concerning survival were the number of liver metastases (p = 0.0044), carcinoembryonic antigen level (p = 0.0191), GPS (p = 0.0029), grade of liver metastasis (p = 0.0033), and the number of lymph node metastases around the primary cancer (p = 0.0087). Multivariate analysis showed the two independent prognostic variables: liver metastases ≥3 (relative risk 2.83) and GPS1/2 (relative risk 3.07). Conclusions: GPS measured before operation and the number of liver metastases may be used as novel predictors of postoperative outcomes in patients who underwent curative resection for CRLM. Copyright © 2010 S. Karger AG, Basel [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]