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<front>
<journal-meta>
<journal-id journal-id-type="publisher-id">KJIM</journal-id>
<journal-title-group>
<journal-title>The Korean Journal of Internal Medicine</journal-title><abbrev-journal-title>Korean J Intern Med</abbrev-journal-title></journal-title-group>
<issn pub-type="ppub">1226-3303</issn>
<issn pub-type="epub">2005-6648</issn>
<publisher>
<publisher-name>The Korean Association of Internal Medicine</publisher-name></publisher></journal-meta>
<article-meta>
<article-id pub-id-type="doi">10.3904/kjim.2017.028</article-id>
<article-id pub-id-type="publisher-id">kjim-2017-028</article-id>
<article-categories>
<subj-group>
<subject>Image of interest</subject></subj-group></article-categories>
<title-group>
<article-title>Epidermoid splenic cyst with elevated serum level of CA19-9</article-title>
</title-group>
<contrib-group>
<contrib contrib-type="author">
<name><surname>Buda</surname><given-names>Natalia</given-names></name>
<xref ref-type="corresp" rid="c1-kjim-2017-028"/>
<xref ref-type="aff" rid="af1-kjim-2017-028"><sup>1</sup></xref>
</contrib>
<contrib contrib-type="author">
<name><surname>Wszo&#x00142;ek</surname><given-names>Anna</given-names></name>
<xref ref-type="aff" rid="af2-kjim-2017-028"><sup>2</sup></xref>
</contrib>
<contrib contrib-type="author">
<name><surname>&#x0015a;ledzi&#x00144;ski</surname><given-names>Maciej</given-names></name>
<xref ref-type="aff" rid="af3-kjim-2017-028"><sup>3</sup></xref>
</contrib>
<contrib contrib-type="author">
<name><surname>&#x0017b;awrocki</surname><given-names>Anton</given-names></name>
<xref ref-type="aff" rid="af4-kjim-2017-028"><sup>4</sup></xref>
</contrib>
<contrib contrib-type="author">
<name><surname>Sworczak</surname><given-names>Krzysztof</given-names></name>
<xref ref-type="aff" rid="af2-kjim-2017-028"><sup>2</sup></xref>
</contrib>
<aff id="af1-kjim-2017-028">
<label>1</label>Department of Internal Medicine, Connective Tissue Diseases and Geriatrics, Medical University of Gdansk, Gdansk, <country>Poland</country></aff>
<aff id="af2-kjim-2017-028">
<label>2</label>Department of Endocrinology and Internal Medicine, Medical University of Gdansk, Gdansk, <country>Poland</country></aff>
<aff id="af3-kjim-2017-028">
<label>3</label>Department of General, Endocrine and Transplant Surgery, Medical University of Gdansk, Gdansk, <country>Poland</country></aff>
<aff id="af4-kjim-2017-028">
<label>4</label>Department of Pathology, Medical University of Gdansk, Gdansk, <country>Poland</country></aff>
</contrib-group>
<author-notes>
<corresp id="c1-kjim-2017-028">Correspondence to Natalia Buda, Ph.D. Tel: +48-600369310 Fax: +48-600369310 E-mail: <email>natabud@wp.pl</email></corresp>
</author-notes>
<pub-date pub-type="ppub">
<month>9</month>
<year>2018</year></pub-date>
<pub-date pub-type="epub">
<day>19</day>
<month>10</month>
<year>2017</year></pub-date>
<volume>33</volume>
<issue>5</issue>
<fpage>1032</fpage>
<lpage>1033</lpage>
<history>
<date date-type="received">
<day>7</day>
<month>01</month>
<year>2017</year></date>
<date date-type="rev-recd">
<day>1</day>
<month>05</month>
<year>2017</year></date>
<date date-type="accepted">
<day>30</day>
<month>05</month>
<year>2017</year></date>
</history>
<permissions>
<copyright-statement>Copyright &#x000A9; 2017 The Korean Association of Internal Medicine</copyright-statement>
<copyright-year>2017</copyright-year>
<license>
<license-p>This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License (<ext-link ext-link-type="uri" xlink:href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/">http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/</ext-link>) which permits unrestricted noncommercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.</license-p></license></permissions>
</article-meta></front>
<body>
<p>The 25-year old patient, was hospitalized due to the abdomen pain in the left upper quadrant, accompanied by watery diarrhoea, nausea, vomits, periodically occurring fever up to 39&#x000b0;C degrees with shivers and the body weight loss (15 kg during 2 months). There was conducted the extensive laboratory diagnostics and there was noted the high level of tumour markers in the plasma: cancer antigen 19.9 (CA19.9) 2,878 U/mL (N &lt; 37 U/mL) and CA-125 95 U/mL (N &lt; 35 U/mL). The results of several tests performed on fecal for parasite eggs and immunological tests of blood infection with hydit (Elis&#x02019;s and Western blot&#x02019;s methods) were negative. Within the diagnostic imaging was performed the ultrasound test of the abdomen, a static scintigraphy of the spleen and the liver with sulphidicid colloid&#x02014;<sup>99m</sup>Tc &#x0002b; single-photon emission computed tomography/computed tomography (CT), magnetic resonance of the abdomen and the lesser pelvic with giving the contrast agent (<xref rid="f1-kjim-2017-028" ref-type="fig">Fig. 1</xref>). The ultrasonography (US) revealed typical splenic cysts&#x02019; features: the complex of homogeneous, anechoic, well separated cysts, with the largest of 90 &#x000d7; 80 mm, divided with a septum into two chambers. One was filled with homogenous hyperechoic content. In the magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) the cysts were: hypointense on T1-weighted images and hyperintense on T2-weighted images and intensity of the signal was similar to water and with no contrast uptake.</p>
<p>Complaints reported by the patient, weight loss and large sizes and unclear character of the splenic cysts qualified for the laparoscopic splenectomy. The liquid culture from the cysts was negative. A histopathology indicated an epidermoid cyst. A cyst wall composed of a thick layer of fibrous tissue was partly lined by thin multilayered nonkeratinizing squamous epithelium; squamous differentiation was confirmed by strong diffuse cytoplasmic expression of CK5/6 (<xref rid="f2-kjim-2017-028" ref-type="fig">Fig. 2</xref>). The postoperative course was not complicated. During the laboratory control (3 weeks after the surgery) was stated the normalization if the CA-125 level and significant (&#x000d7;20) lowering of the CA19.9 level in plasma.</p>
<p>Coexistence of the increased CA19-9 and CA-125 in plasma with the epidermoid splenic cyst seems to be substantial in the differential diagnostics of the spleen lesions. In the diagnostics are also useful imaging tests like: the US and next CT or MRI. However the essential meaning has the histopathological test&#x02019;s result. In the case of the symptomatic cysts and of the large size (&gt; 5 cm), the chosen treatment is the partial or complete splenectomy.</p>
</body>
<back>
<fn-group>
<fn fn-type="conflict"><p>No potential conflict of interest relevant to this article was reported.</p></fn>
</fn-group>
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<title>Figures</title>
<fig id="f1-kjim-2017-028" position="float">
<label>Figure 1.</label><caption><p>Imaging diagnostic tests. (A) Ultrasound examination of abdomen shows: anechoic, well demarcated, and capsulated spleen cyst. (B) Static scintigraphy of the liver and spleen in the lesion with sulphidic colloid—<sup>99m</sup>Tc + single-photon emission computed tomography/computed tomography: there is no uptake of the marked sulphidic colloid. An arrow shows spleen cyst. (C, D) Magnetic resonance imaging of abdomen shows: hypointense cyst T1-weighted image and hyperintense T2-weighted image of the spleen.</p></caption>
<graphic xlink:href="kjim-2017-028f1.tif"/>
</fig>
<fig id="f2-kjim-2017-028" position="float">
<label>Figure 2.</label><caption><p>(A) Intraoperative image of the spleen cyst (arrows). (B) Histopathology: a cyst wall composed lined by thin multilayered nonkeratinizing squamous epithelium. Epidermoid splenic cyst (&#x000d7;40).</p></caption>
<graphic xlink:href="kjim-2017-028f2.tif"/>
</fig>
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