Chemotherapy-induced fulminant acute pancreatitis in pancreatic carcinoma: A case report

Cases of chemotherapy-induced pancreatitis are rarely reported and among those diagnosed, the majority are mild and self-limiting. However, no previous cases of fulminant acute pancreatitis (FAP) induced by chemotherapeutic agents have been reported. The current study presents a case of FAP in a 62-year-old female on gemcitabine and capecitabine therapy. The patient was admitted to the China-Japan Friendship Hospital (Beijing, China) with the symptoms of acute pancreatitis two days after the completion of the first cycle of chemotherapy. Shock, hypoxemia and acute renal failure supervened, which resulted in mortality. As the common etiologies of pancreatitis were eliminated, a correlation between the incidence of FAP, and pancreatic cancer or chemotherapy, or both was suspected. Clinicians should be aware of this potential adverse effect when prescribing chemotherapeutic agents, particularly in patients with pre-existing risk factors for pancreatitis.