Signet Ring Cell Carcinoma of the Stomach Remaining in the Mucosal Layer during 7 Years and 8 Months: A Case Report

Takayuki Yamada, Takashi Roppongi, Michio Maemura, Manabu Honma^*, Tatsuya Yamada^**, Izumi Takeyoshi^**, Susumu Ohwada^**and Yasuo Morishita^**

Department of Surgery, Pathology^*, National Numata Hospital
Second Department of Surgery, Gunma University Faculty of Medicine^**

We reported a case of signet ring cell carcinoma of the stomach remaining in the mucosal layer for 7 years and 8 months. A 77-year-old woman firstly diagnosed with biopsy-confirmed signet ring cell carcinoma with lamina propria invasion of the stomach at the age of 69, refused treatment and was missed in follow-up. When seen for upper abdominal pain at the age of 77, she was found in the upper gastrointestinal endoscopy and radiography to have an extended depressed lesion in the anterior wall of the gastric angle with fold convergency. Histological examination of the biopsy specimens showed signet ring cell carcinoma. Distal gastrectomy and D2 lymph node dissection with Billroth I reconstruction were conducted with an uncomplicated postoperative course. The tumor was histologically diagnosed as signet ring cell carcinoma located in the mucosa without lymph node involvement. This case suggests that some of early signet ring cell carcinoma of the stomach remains in the mucosal layer for long time and dose not progressively worsen.

Key words
early gastric cancer, long-term follow up

Reprint requests
Takayuki Yamada Department of Surgery, National Numata Hospital 1551-4 Kamihara-machi, Numata-City, 378-0051 JAPAN

Accepted
November 27, 2002

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