Carcinoma in adenoma of the papilla of Vater

Carcinoma in adenoma of the papilla of Vater is extremely rare. We now report a case of adenocarcinoma in adenoma of the papilla of Vater and the clinicopathological findings are discussed. A 73-year-old Japanese woman was endoscopically diagnosed as a case of carcinoma combined with adenoma of the papilla of Vater. She underwent pancreatoduodenectomy and the postoperative course was satisfactory. Histological examination of the resected tissues revealed a superficial adenocarcinoma in the adenoma of the papilla of Vater. In certain cases, carcinoma of the papilla of Vater may develop from a pre-existing adenoma in the region. Therefore, we recommend that pancreatoduodenectomy should be done when an adenoma presents in this region.