Necrolytic Migratory Erythema: Case Report and Clinical Review

Necrolytic migratory erythema caused by pancreatic hyperglycemia with emphasis on therapeutic and prognosis: A case report

BACKGROUND

With the incidence of pancreatic diseases increasing year by year, pancreatic hyperglycemia, as one of the common complications, is gradually gaining attention for its impact on the skin health of patients.

CASE SUMMARY

This was the case of an elderly female with clinical manifestations of necrolytic migratory erythema, "three more and one less," diabetes mellitus, hypertension, anemia, hypoproteinemia, and other syndromes, which had been misdiagnosed as eczema. Abdominal computed tomography showed a pancreatic caudal space-occupying lesion, and the magnetic resonance scanning of the epigastric region with dynamic enhancement and diffusion-weighted imaging suggested a tumor of the pancreatic tail, which was considered to be a neuroendocrine tumor or cystadenoma. The patient was referred to a more equipped hospital for laparoscopic pancreatic tail resection. Post-surgery diagnosis revealed a neuroendocrine tumor in the tail of the pancreas. To date, the patient's general condition is good, and she is still under close follow-up.

CONCLUSION

Necrolytic migratory erythema can be induced by endocrine system tumors or endocrine metabolic abnormalities, with complex clinical manifestations, difficult diagnosis, and easy misdiagnosis by dermatologists. The initial treatment principles in dermatology include symptomatic supportive therapy and effective drugs to relieve skin lesions. After clarifying the etiology of glucagonoma, comprehensive treatment in collaboration with endocrinologists, general surgeons, and oncologists can help provide individualized treatment for patients and improve their prognosis.

A novel likely pathogenetic variant p.(Cys235Arg) of the MEN1 gene in multiple endocrine neoplasia type 1 with multifocal glucagonomas

PURPOSE

Multiple endocrine neoplasia type 1 (MEN1) is a hereditary endocrine syndrome caused by pathogenic variants in MEN1 tumor suppressor gene. Diagnosis is commonly based on clinical criteria and confirmed by genetic testing. The objective of the present study was to report on a MEN1 case characterized by multiple pancreatic glucagonomas, with particular concern on the possible predisposing genetic defects.

METHODS

While conducting an extensive review of the most recent scientific evidence on the unusual glucagonoma familial forms, we analyzed the MEN1 gene in a 35-year-old female with MEN1, as well as her son and daughter, using Sanger and next-generation sequencing (NGS) approaches. We additionally explored the functional and structural consequences of the identified variant using in silico analyses.

RESULTS

NGS did not show any known pathogenic variant in the tested regions. However, a new non-conservative variant in exon 4 of MEN1 gene was found in heterozygosity in the patient and in her daughter, resulting in an amino acid substitution from hydrophobic cysteine to hydrophilic arginine at c.703T > C, p.(Cys235Arg). This variant is absent from populations databases and was never reported in full papers: its characteristics, together with the high specificity of the patient's clinical phenotype, pointed toward a possible causative role.

CONCLUSION

Our findings confirm the need for careful genetic analysis of patients with MEN1 and establish a likely pathogenic role for the new p.(Cys235Arg) variant, at least in the rare subset of MEN1 associated with glucagonomas.

How Many Times Can One Go Back to the Drawing Board before the Accurate Diagnosis and Surgical Treatment of Glucagonoma?

Glucagonomas are neuroendocrine tumors (NETs) that arise from the alpha cells of the pancreatic islets. They are typically slow-growing tumors associated with abnormal glucagon secretion, resulting in one or more non-specific clinical features, such as necrolytic migratory erythema (NME), diabetes, diarrhea, deep vein thrombosis, weight loss, and depression. Here, we report the case of a 44-year-old male with a history of diabetes mellitus, presenting with a pruritic and painful disseminated cutaneous eruption of erythematous plaques, with scales and peripheral pustules, misdiagnosed as disseminated pustular psoriasis and treated for 2 years with oral retinoid and glucocorticoids. During this period, the patient complained of weight loss of 32 kg and diarrhea and developed deep vein thrombosis. These symptoms, together with an inadequate response to therapy of the skin lesions, led to the reassessment of the initial diagnosis. Laboratory tests confirmed elevated plasma glucagon levels (>1000 pg/mL) and computed tomography (CT) scans revealed a 35/44 mm tumor in the pancreatic tail. Due to considerable disease complications and the COVID-19 pandemic, the surgical removal of the tumor was delayed for nearly 2 years. During this time, somatostatin analogue therapy efficiently controlled the glucagonoma syndrome and likely prevented tumor progression. As in other functional pancreatic NETs, the early clinical recognition of hormonal hypersecretion syndrome and the multidisciplinary approach are the keys for best patient management.

Necrolytic Migratory Erythema: A Forgotten Paraneoplastic Condition

Background:

Necrolytic migratory erythema (NME) is most commonly a paraneoplastic condition. It is the dermatologic manifestation classically associated with glucagonoma pancreatic neuroendocrine tumour. Glucagonoma syndrome has been defined by the constellation of secreting tumour associated with overproduction by the α-cells in the pancreatic islets of Langerhans, abnormally elevated blood level of glucagon, and skin findings of NME.

Objective:

Although rare, all dermatologists must know and recognise NME promptly to request useful investigations for the diagnosis of this characteristic neuroendocrine tumour.

Methods and Results:

We report a case of a middle-aged woman seen in our dermatology clinic with longstanding skin findings suggestive of NME revealing a glucagonoma. Surgical removal was associated with complete resolution of the cutaneous and systemic features.

Conclusion:

NME is often the first clinical finding of an occult neuroendocrine pancreatic neoplasia. Dermatologists must be aware of this condition since they can be the first physician to suspect it and allow multidisciplinary management, which influences the prognostic value. Surgical removal is the first-line therapy if early diagnosis is done before liver metastases occur.

Glucagonoma syndrome: a case report with focus on skin disorders

Glucagonoma syndrome is a rare paraneoplastic phenomenon. Necrolytic migratory erythema is often one of the first presenting symptoms. We report a case of a 55-year-old man with a 2-year history of recalcitrant eruption. Abdominal computer tomography was performed, which revealed a tumor in the tail of the pancreas. After pancreatectomy, his cutaneous lesions vanished in a few days. Skin symptoms are important, as they are often essential for early diagnosis of glucagonoma syndrome and may prevent metastatic disease; hence, in this report, we focus on skin disorders in glucagonoma syndrome.

Necrolytic migratory erythema as the first manifestation of pancreatic neuroendocrine tumor

Necrolytic migratory erythma (NME) is an obligatory paraneoplastic syndrome. Here we describe a woman admitted to the dermatology ward with NME which was later found to be associated with glucagonoma, a slow-growing, rare pancreatic neuroendocrine tumor. Even more rarely, the tumor was located in the pancreas head, while most of such lesions are located in the distal pancreas. The diagnosis of this rare tumor requires an elevated serum glucagon level and imaging confirming a pancreatic tumor. After surgical removal of the tumor, the patient’s cutaneous and systemic features resolved. It is therefore imperative that clinicians recognize NME early in order to make an accurate diagnosis and to provide treatment for this rare tumor.

Is necrolytic migratory erythema due to glucagonoma a misnomer? A more apt name might be mucosal and intertriginous erosive dermatitis

BACKGROUND

In dermatology, many conditions are given names that ultimately prove to be a misnomer (eg, mycosis fungoides, pyogenic granuloma). For most misnomers, continued use of the inappropriate word(s) rarely results in a delay in diagnosis and/or treatment. An argument can be made that the term necrolytic migratory erythema (NME) due to glucagonoma results in a delay in diagnosis, often with fatal consequences.

OBJECTIVE

We reviewed the literature of the past 30 years concerning the dermatologic and histologic findings of NME in association with glucagonoma. The most striking feature evident in nearly all reported cases is the presence of mucosal lesions and annular, eroded, eczematous patches and plaques of intertriginous areas.

CONCLUSION

We propose the renaming of the eruption associated with glucagonoma to one that emphasizes its unique localization to the mucosa and intertriginous areas: mucosal and intertriginous erosive dermatitis. It is hoped that this will lead to a more timely recognition of the condition and a possible improvement in prognosis.

Neoplastic/paraneoplastic dermatitis, fasciitis, and panniculitis

The skin changes outlined in this article can be important clues to an underlying malignancy. Paraneoplastic dermatoses are skin disorders associated with an underlying neoplasm and whose course parallels that of the neoplasm. Recognizing these skin presentations leads to early diagnosis and management of the underlying malignancy. Effective treatment of the associated neoplasm often leads to improvement of the cutaneous manifestations and should be the primary focus of each patient's management.

Diagnostic Challenge of Glucagonoma: Case Report and Literature Review

OBJECTIVE

To report the diagnostic difficulties encountered in a case of glucagonoma.

METHODS

We provide a literature review and present the clinical findings, pertinent laboratory data, and results of related studies in a patient with a glucagonoma.

RESULTS

A 54-year-old-man, with no relevant history of endocrine disorders, presented to the hospital with a 5-year history of recurrent stomatitis and glossitis, a more recent weight loss of 11.5 kg, and recurrent pruritic maculae on the scalp in conjunction with raised erythematous maculae in the scrotal region and perineum that gradually migrated to the distal extremities, becoming bullous and painful. The patient was hospitalized, and because of the dermatologic findings suggestive of necrolytic migratory erythema, the presence of a glucagonoma was suspected. His blood glucose levels were in the normal range. Glucagon levels were found to be elevated, and imaging studies confirmed the presence of an enlarged mass in the pancreatic tail, without evidence of extension to surrounding structures. Liver metastatic lesions were also excluded. After surgical removal of the tumor, the skin and oral mucosal lesions disappeared spontaneously. The histologic appearance and immunohistochemical staining results confirmed the diagnosis of a glucagonoma. Subsequently, all related symptoms resolved, and the glucagon levels normalized.

CONCLUSION

The diagnosis of glucagonoma is often delayed. Clinicians should be aware of the unusual initial manifestations of this tumor and the potential for less than a full spectrum of the characteristic features of the glucagonoma syndrome.