Published online Oct 15, 2015. doi: 10.4251/wjgo.v7.i10.259
Peer-review started: April 3, 2015
First decision: July 10, 2015
Revised: July 20, 2015
Accepted: August 4, 2015
Article in press: August 7, 2015
Published online: October 15, 2015
Processing time: 199 Days and 6.8 Hours
Paraneoplastic leukemoid reaction is a rare syndrome defined by a leukocyte count exceeding 50 Giga/Liter (G/L), mostly described with progressive lung or renal carcinoma. We report a case of a 68-year-old man with recurrent pancreatic carcinoma presenting a leukemoid reaction with a white blood cell count of 63.87 G/L without identified infectious, iatrogenic or hematologic causes. His overall condition quickly degraded and he died three weeks after the discovery of the leukemoid reaction. This is the first case in French literature of leukemoid reaction in a patient with pancreatic carcinoma with poor prognostic value.
Core tip: Paraneoplastic leukemoid reaction is a rare syndrome which seems to be associated with aggressive tumors, rapid clinical deterioration, and short survival. We report a rare presentation of pancreatic cancer with leukemoid reaction in a 68-year-old man who died three weeks after its discovery. This paper may contribute to clinical practice when encountering such a patient because of its poor prognostic value.