Published online Aug 26, 2020. doi: 10.12998/wjcc.v8.i16.3411
Peer-review started: May 1, 2020
First decision: June 18, 2020
Revised: July 3, 2020
Accepted: July 30, 2020
Article in press: July 30, 2020
Published online: August 26, 2020
Processing time: 115 Days and 13.4 Hours
Autoimmune pancreatitis has received considerable attention, especially due to the marked effect of corticosteroid therapy on its clinical course. Knowledge, especially regarding type 1 autoimmune pancreatitis, has significantly increased over the last decades, and despite significant differences in pathophysiology and outcomes, both type 1 and 2 autoimmune pancreatitis are still considered different types of the same disease. Some have proposed a different nomenclature reflecting these differences. Although the term steroid-responsive pancreatitides may be interpreted as synonymous to type 1 and 2 autoimmune pancreatitis, these are not the only pancreatic conditions that show a response to steroid therapy. Acute pancreatitis caused by vasculitis and connective tissue diseases and acute pancreatitis secondary to checkpoint inhibitors or programmed cell death receptor antibody-mediated blockage cancer therapy may also benefit from steroid treatment. This review presents current concepts on these disorders, aiming to increase awareness, analyze similarities and differences, and propose a new nomenclature that reflects their specific particularities, clustering them under the term “steroid-responsive pancreatitides”.
Core tip: This review presents the rationale on the current evidence on pancreatic disorders that respond to steroid therapy. It focuses not only on autoimmune pancreatitis 1 and 2 but also on less recognized but relevant conditions, such as acute pancreatitis related to immune checkpoint inhibitors and vasculitis and connective tissue diseases that often need and respond to corticosteroid therapy. The aims are to increase awareness, analyze clinical and pathophysiological similarities and differences, recognize research opportunities, and propose a new nomenclature that reflects their specific particularities, clustering them under the term steroid-responsive pancreatitides.