The Overlap of Autoimmune Pancreatitis and Pancreatic Cancer: A Clinical Challenge.

Autoimmune pancreatitis (AIP) and pancreatic cancer share clinical and radiological features, making biopsy the only definitive way of differentiating them. Numerous reports in the literature describe the co-occurrence of AIP and pancreatic cancer either in a synchronous manner or metachronous manner raising the question of which condition predisposes to the other and whether a causal relationship exists between them. Studies suggest shared mechanisms, including K-ras mutations and tumor suppressor gene silencing. This case highlights the importance of long-term surveillance in AIP patients to monitor for malignancy.