Long-term survival of a patient with metachronous rectal metastasis from primary cecal cancer who underwent repetitive resection and chemotherapy: a case report

Jiro Shimazaki, Takeshi Nakachi, Takanobu Tabuchi, Hideyuki Ubukata, Takafumi Tabuchi

There are few reported cases of colorectal metastasis from cancers of other organs, particularly other segments of the colon. Here we describe the long-term survival of a 68-year-old male patient with metachronous rectal metastasis from cecal cancer who underwent repetitive resection and chemotherapy. The patient underwent ileocecal resection and hepatectomy for cecal cancer with liver metastasis (T3, N1a, M1a, Stage IVA) in 2006. The patient subsequently underwent splenectomy for splenic metastasis in 2007. In August 2008, barium enema revealed compression of the rectal wall, and abdominal computed tomography (CT) detected a mass along the rectum extending into the pelvis. Rectal metastasis from cecal cancer was suspected and Hartmann's operation with bilateral seminal vesicle dissection was performed. Histological examination of the excised tumor revealed moderately differentiated adenocarcinoma formed in the muscularis propria of the rectum and infiltrating the connective tissue between the seminal vesicle and rectum. However, no tumor was detected in the rectal mucosa or submucosa. These histological findings supported the diagnosis of rectal metastasis from cecal cancer. The patient has been monitored at our clinic for 60 months after surgical removal of the rectal metastasis. The findings from this case should alert oncologists to the potential danger of rectal metastasis from primary colon cancer and the benefits of timely complete resection in terms of improved patient outcomes.