Urachal cancer with direct caecal invasion: differential diagnosis from primary colon cancer.

A 56-year-old man who had a history of repeated previous treatment for cystitis was admitted with abdominal distension, dysuria, pollakiuria, nocturia and sensation of urine retention after emptying the bladder. A CT scan showed a 10 cm irregularly shaped soft tissue mass abutting the anterosuperior aspect of the urinary bladder with wall thickening and a soft tissue component in the caecum. Colonoscopy revealed an encircling huge fungating mass on the caecum. The tumour was removed surgically. Histological examination showed moderately differentiated adenocarcinoma extending to the caecal wall and the bladder mucosa, the origin of the mass was consistent with that of a urachal cyst. The epicentre of the tumour was located in the bladder wall, with a distinct margin as a pathological feature. The patient was diagnosed with urachal cancer and concurrent direct caecal invasion.

Rare locations of metastastatic renal cell carcinoma: a presentation of three cases.

INTRODUCTION: Metastatic renal cell carcinoma (RCC) frequently spreads not only to neighboring lymph nodes, but also to distant organs, including the lungs, liver, bones and brain. CASE REPORT: We presented three cases of RCC with colon metastasis. In the first, 63-year-old patient, after left nephrectomy followed with lyphadenectomy in paraaortic lymph node, left hemicolectomy was done due to RCC metastasis in rectosigmoid colon. In the second, 35-year-old patient, left radical nephrectomy was followed two years later with partial right nephrectomy, lung metastasectomy, small bowel and coecum resection and right orchiectomy all as separate procedures in different time intervals. The patient died from brain and bone metastases two years after the first surgery. The third, 35-year-old patient, had right nephrectomy followed by repeted lymphadenectomies after 6, 12 and 24 months. Four years later RCC spreaded to coecum and right hemicolectomy was performed. CONCLUSION: RCC treated with nephrectomy should be carefully followed up with imaging methods as a proper treatment of RCC metastases to distant organs could be important for a patient survival.

A role of 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission/computed tomography in a strategy for abdominal wall metastasis of colorectal mucinous adenocarcinoma developed after laparoscopic surgery.

Metastasis to the abdominal wall including port sites after laparoscopic surgery for colorectal cancer is rare. Resection of metastatic lesions may lead to greater survival benefit if the abdominal wall metastasis is the only manifestation of recurrent disease. A 57-year-old man, who underwent laparoscopic surgery for advanced mucinous adenocarcinoma of the cecum 6 years prior, developed a nodule in the surgical wound at the lower right abdomen. Although tumor markers were within normal limits, the metastasis to the abdominal wall and abdominal cavity from the previous cecal cancer was suspected. An abdominal computed tomography scan did not provide detective evidence of metastasis. (18)F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission/computed tomography ((18)F-FDG PET/CT) was therefore performed, which demonstrated increased (18)F-fluorodeoxyglucose uptake (maximum standardized uptake value: 3.1) in the small abdominal wall nodule alone. Histopathological examination of the resected nodule confirmed the diagnosis of metastatic mucinous adenocarcinoma. Prognosis of intestinal mucinous adenocarcinoma is reported to be poorer than that of non-mucinous adenocarcinoma. In conclusion, this case suggests an important role of (18)F-FDG PET/CT in early diagnosis and decision-making regarding therapy for recurrent disease in cases where a firm diagnosis of recurrent colorectal cancer is difficult to make.

Ileocaecal intussusception secondary to metastatic phyllodes tumour of the breast.

A patient with phyllodes tumour of the breast is discussed. During follow-up, she presented with intestinal obstruction caused by ileocaecal intussusception. The cause of the intussusception was metastatic phyllodes tumour, which is a unique presentation.

[Results of surgical treatment of locally-spread colorectal cancer].

During the period from 2001 to 2005 operations were performed on 186 patients with locally-spread colorectal cancer. In 132 cases (the 1st group) radical combined resections were performed, 54 patients (the 2nd group) underwent palliative operations. The morbidity rate was 18.2% (24 cases) in the first group and 7.4% (4 cases) in the second group. The mortality rate in the first group was 2.3% (3 cases), no mortality was observed in the second group. Overall 3-year survival in the first group was 69.9%, and no one patient of the second group survived longer than 3 years. Overall 5-year survival in the first group was 54.7%, and the relapse-free 5-year survival was 52.8%. The data obtained have shown the effectiveness of combined resections in treatment of locally-spread colorectal cancer. We suggest that further improvement of long-term results can be achieved using chemoradiation.

[Diffuse mucosal gastric and coecal metastasis from occult breast cancer]. / Diffuse Magen- und Coecum-Schleimhaut-Metastasierung bei okkultem Mammakarzinom.

HISTORY AND CLINICAL FINDINGS: A slightly confused and apathic 78-year-old woman presented in a deteriorating general condition and unspecific symptoms with (diarrhea, vomiting, nausea). INVESTIGATIONS: Laboratory tests revealed megalocytic anemia with vitamin B12 deficiency. As a cause, atrophic gastritis was suspected. Esophagogastroduodenoscopy with multiple "gastric mapping" biopsies revealed diffuse infiltration by an adenocarcinoma in 12 out of 14 gastric biopsy sites. Surprisingly, this malignant tissue was identified by immunohistochemistry as a diffuse infiltration by an as yet unrecognized breast cancer. Immunohistochemically identical infiltrations were identified in the cecum by colonoscopy. TREATMENT AND COURSE: Subsequent mammography identified a retromammilar primary tumor in the right breast. Because of the patient's poor general condition merely palliative therapy with oral tamoxifen was initiated. CONCLUSION: The correct diagnosis and appropriate therapy of gastric and coecal metastases secondary to an as yet unrecognized breast cancer were rendered possible only by additional immunohistochemical testing with specific antibodies against the estrogen receptor, cytoceratin (CK) 20 and 7 and E-cadherin.

[A case of malignant pleural mesothelioma with gastrointestinal metastases which were diagnosed by endoscopic biopsy].

A 63-year-old man who had general malaise and dyspnea on effort, was admitted to our hospital. Chest X-ray film on admission showed left pleural effusion. Chest and abdominal CT after left chest drainage revealed left pleural thickening, mediastinal lymph node swelling, multiple lung nodules, osteolytic change of the left 4th rib, and multiple liver tumors. Right pleural effusion and ascites was also recognized. Cytology of the left pleural effusion suggested malignant mesothelioma. He had a skin tumor on his anterior chest. Biopsy revealed metastasis of malignant epithelioid mesothelioma. Upper gastrointestinal endoscopy showed a duodenal tumor and colonoscopy showed a cecal erosion. Endoscopic biopsy revealed metastases of malignant mesothelioma identical to the skin tumor. Because of the left pleural thickening, the primary site was considered to be in the left pleura. Here we report a case of malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) with multiple distant metastases to the duodenum, cecum, skin, lung, liver, and rib. Gastrointestinal metastases of MPM detected by endoscopic biopsy are very rare. Only one case of cecal metastasis has ever been reported.

Caecal metastasis from breast cancer presenting as intestinal obstruction.

BACKGROUND: Gastrointestinal metastsasis from the breast cancer are rare. We report a patient who presented with intestinal obstruction due to solitary caecal metastasis from infiltrating ductal carcinoma of breast. We also review the available literature briefly. CASE PRESENTATION: A 72 year old lady with past history of breast cancer presented with intestinal obstruction due to a caecal mass. She underwent an emergency right hemicolectomy. The histological examination of the right hemicolectomy specimen revealed an adenocarcinoma in caecum staining positive for Cytokeratin 7 and Carcinoembryonic antigen and negative for Cytokeratin 20, CDX2 and Estrogen receptor. Eight out of 11 mesenteric nodes showed tumour deposits. A histological diagnosis of metastatic breast carcinoma was given. CONCLUSION: To the best of our knowledge, this is the first case report of solitary metastasis to caecum from infiltrating ductal carcinoma of breast. Awareness of this possibility will aid in appropriate management of such patients.

Caecal metastasis from a primary small-cell lung carcinoma.

Small bowel metastases from a primary lung carcinoma are rare. We report a case of a 59-year-old male with a primary small-cell lung carcinoma who developed anaemia and bowel symptoms. On colonoscopic examination he was found to have a tumour in the caecum near the ileocaecal valve, which was biopsied, revealing small neuroendocrine tumour cells. The patient then underwent systemic chemotherapy, which achieved a reduction in the size of the primary lung tumour and an improvement in his bowel symptoms. It is important that such a rare condition be recognised early as complicated intestinal metastases from a lung carcinoma can lead to high mortality rates and poor short-term outcome. With advances in chemotherapy and palliative care, patients with metastatic lung carcinoma can sometimes survive more than a year with reasonable quality of life.

Metastatic lung cancer presenting as lower gastrointestinal hemorrhage.

Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer mortality in the developed world, and often presents with metastatic disease. Metastatic lung cancer rarely presents with gastrointestinal symptoms, but we report a case of an elderly male with metastatic lung carcinoma to the cecum who presented with melena. The patient required blood transfusions, but eventually died of septic shock. This case is consistent with previously reported cases of lung cancer metastatic to the gastrointestinal tract which suggest that tumor-associated bleeding in this patient population is a pre-terminal event.

Cervical node metastasis as the first sign of cancer of the caecum.

The unusual case of an adenocarcinoma of the caecum undiagnosed until the appearance of a large neck and axillary mass is reported. To our knowledge, this is the first reported case of cervical node metastasis as the first sign of a caecal cancer, and 18 fluorine-18-labeled 2-fluoro-2-deoxy-D-glucose positron emission tomography (FDG-PET) proved critical in achieving the correct diagnosis. When an adenocarcinoma is found in the neck or axilla, even an abdominal primary location such as the large bowel can be taken into account and employment of FDG-PET should be considered.

LaPlace's law revisited: cecal perforation as an unusual presentation of pancreatic carcinoma.

BACKGROUND: Pancreatic cancer is often locally and distally aggressive, but initial presentation as cecal perforation is uncommon. CASE PRESENTATION: We describe a patient presenting with pneumoperitoneum, found at initial exploration to have a cecal perforation believed to be secondary to a large cecal adenoma, after palpation of the remainder of the colon revealed hard stool but no distal obstruction. Postoperatively, however, the patient progressed to large bowel obstruction and upon reexploration, a mass could now be delineated, encompassing the splenic flexure, splenic hilum, and distal pancreas. Histological evaluation determined this was locally invasive pancreatic adenocarcinoma, and therefore the true etiology of the original cecal perforation. CONCLUSION: Any perforation localized to the cecum must be highly suspicious for a distal obstruction, as dictated by the law of LaPlace.

Metastatic prostate cancer masquerading clinically and radiologically as a primary caecal carcinoma.

BACKGROUND: Prostatic carcinoma is the second most common cause of cancer-related deaths in males in the West. Approximately 20% of patients present with metastatic disease. We describe the case of a patient with metastatic prostate cancer to the bowel presenting clinically and radiologically as a primary caecal cancer. CASE PRESENTATION: A 72 year-old man presented with abdominal discomfort and a clinically palpable caecal mass and a firm nodule on his thigh, the latter behaving clinically and radiologically as a lipoma. Computed tomographic (CT) scan showed a luminally protuberant caecal mass with regional nodal involvement. The patient was being treated (Zoladex) for prostatic cancer diagnosed 6 years previously and was known to have bony metastases. On admission his PSA was 245.4 nmol/ml. The patient underwent a right hemicolectomy. Histology showed a poorly differentiated adenocarcinoma which was PSA positive, confirming metastatic prostatic adenocarcinoma to the caecum. The patient underwent adjuvant chemotherapy and is free from recurrence a year later. CONCLUSION: Metastasis of prostatic carcinoma to the bowel is a very rare occurrence and presents a challenging diagnosis. The diagnosis is supported by immunohistochemistry for PSA. The treatment for metastatic prostate cancer is mainly palliative.