Acute pancreatitis secondary to neuroendocrine pancreatic tumors: report of 3 cases and literature review.

Pancreatic tumors (particularly neuroendocrine) are an uncommon cause of acute pancreatitis (AP). This is a report of 3 cases of acute pancreatitis secondary to advanced neuroendocrine tumors and a literature review. Including these cases, only 30 have been reported. Most cases are non-functioning, diagnosed in an advanced stage, associating mild pancreatitis and in patients older than forty. Pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors are an uncommon cause of AP but must be included in the differential diagnosis of this disease, especially if the patient is older than 40 and the etiology of the AP is not clear.