A Case of Carcinoid Tumor of the Colon in a Young Woman

Yoshiaki Murakami, Takashi Yokoyama*, Takashi Kodama, Yoshio Takesue, Mitsuaki Okita, Atsushi Nakamitsu, Yuji Imamura, Takahiro Santo, Katsunari Miyamoto, Hiroaki Tsumura, Toshiaki Hirata, Yuichiro Matsuura

First Department of Surgery, Department of General Medicine*, Hiroshima University, School of Medicine

A case of carcinoid tumor of the colon in a 23-year-old woman is described. The patient complained of left flank pain and her serum LDH level was high. Ultrasonography and computed tomography revealed a 10×5 cm mass in the left upper abdomen. Barium enema revealed obstruction of the colon in the splenic flexure. Under the suspicion of a malignant tumor which originated from the wall of the colon, laparotomy was performed. Because the tumor invaded the left kidney and tail of the pancreas, left hemicolectomy with resection of the left kidney, spleen and tail of the pancreas was performed. Subsequent pathological findings revealed a carcinoid tumor with metastasis to lymph nodes which was classified as Soga's "mixed type", and the tumor was composed of non-argentaffin, non-argyrophil endocrine cells. Carcinoid tumor of the colon in a young woman is very rare, but this tumor is characteristic of carcinoid tumor originating from the hindgut, most cases of which are "mixed type", composed of non-argentaffin, non-argyrophil endocrine cells. A review of 45 cases of carcinoid tumor of the colon reported in Japan is also described.

Key words
carcinoid tumor of the colon

Reprint requests
Yoshiaki Murakami First Department of Surgery, Hiroshima University School of Medicine
1-2-3 Kasumi, Minami-ku, Hiroshima, 734 JAPAN

Accepted
February 12, 1992

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