# Pembrolizumab-Induced Pancreatitis: Take It With a Grain of Salt

## TL;DR

A 64-year-old man developed acute pancreatitis after receiving pembrolizumab for prostate cancer, highlighting a rare but possible side effect of the drug.

## Contribution

The paper reports a case of pembrolizumab-induced pancreatitis in a patient with metastatic prostate cancer.

## Key findings

- The patient developed acute pancreatitis after eight cycles of pembrolizumab.
- All other causes of pancreatitis were excluded in the patient.
- The case highlights the potential for pembrolizumab to cause immune-related adverse effects.

## Abstract

Keytruda (pembrolizumab) is an immunomodulator that prevents the interaction between programmed cell death protein (PD-1) and programmed death ligand (PD-L1/2) on immune cells and tumour cells, thereby preventing T cell dysfunction. At times, mounting a strong immune response against tumour cells may not spare normal cells, leading to a variety of multisystemic adverse effects. With this, we present a case of a 64-year-old male who developed acute pancreatitis after completing eight cycles of Keytruda for castrate-resistant metastatic prostate cancer for six months, after all other causes of pancreatitis were excluded.