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Updated: Aug 22, 2026

Dynamic Contrast Enhanced Magnetic Resonance Imaging of an Orthotopic Pancreatic Cancer Mouse Model
Published on: April 18, 2015
Calcitonin-secreting tumor of the pancreas
Prashant M Mullerpatan1, Shashank R Joshi, Rajiv C Shah
1Department of Surgical Oncology, Lilavati Hospital and Research Centre, Bandra Reclamation, Bandra(W), Mumbai 400 050, India.
Abstract:
Pancreatic endocrine tumors (PETs) are unusual tumors arising from cells belonging generically to the amine precursor uptake and decarboxylation systems. We present a case of a calcitonin-secreting PET in a 56-year-old female who presented with watery diarrhea, dehydration and hypokalemia. Investigation revealed hypercalcemia, hyperphosphatemia, hypercalcitonemia and a well-defined mass in the head of the pancreas on CT scan. Following a pancreaticoduodenectomy her serum calcitonin levels returned to normal and diarrhea disappeared. The identification of this particularly rare presentation of a calcitonin-secreting PET provides the opportunity to examine this pathological entity within the context of the very few previously reported instances of this disease.
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