Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma associated with Potter type III cystic disease

Although polycystic liver disease (PLD) is known to be associated with autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease, a finding of PLD with pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma is extremely rare. We have experienced one such case of a ductal adenocarcinoma of the pancreas in a patient with Potter type III cystic disease of the liver and kidney. A 63-year-old man was admitted to our hospital because of obstructive jaundice. Six months previously, on admission to a local hospital for treatment of diabetes mellitus, he had been found to have polycystic disease of the liver and kidney. Ultrasound examination revealed dilatation of the intrahepatic bile duct and the common bile duct. Blood tests showed an elevated total bilirubin level. Abdominal computed tomography scans and magnetic resonance imaging demonstrated polycystic lesions in the liver and the bilateral kidneys. Percutaneous transhepatic cholangio-drainage was performed, and fluorography of the biliary tree revealed obstruction of the lower common bile duct, causing jaundice. This appears to be a case of independent association of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma with polycystic disease of the liver and kidney. The patient's sister, who also had polycystic disease of the liver and kidney, had died of squamous cell carcinoma of the tongue. Although familial associations of carcinomas with polycystic liver disease may be extremely rare, they provide a perspective for the etiology of polycystic liver disease.