Brain metastasis from pancreatic cancer: A case report and literature review

A 68-year-old man presented to our hospital with a 1-month history of slowly progressing altered mental status and gait disturbance. Magnetic resonance imaging and abdominal computed tomography revealed advanced pancreatic cancer (PC) with brain and para-aortic lymph node metastases. Gross total resection of the brain metastatic tumor was performed. Although symptoms improved, the patient died 3 months postoperatively. In general, the prognosis for PC patients with brain metastasis is very poor. Surgical resection of brain metastasis may play a very limited role in allowing long-term survival of patients for whom the primary PC is controlled or with particular oncocytic-type tumors.