Aggressive treatment of metastatic squamous cell carcinoma of the rectum to the liver: a case report and a brief review of the literature

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Rectal squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) is a rare tumor. The incidence of this malignancy has been reported to be 0.25 to 1 per 1000 colorectal carcinomas. From a review of the English literature 55 cases of SCC of the rectum have been...

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Main Authors: Carvounis Eleni E, Samanides Lazaros D, Vassiliou John G, Dafnios Nikolaos A, Marinis Athanasios D, Theodosopoulos Theodosios K, Smyrniotis Vassilios E
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: BMC 2006-08-01
Series:World Journal of Surgical Oncology
Online Access:http://www.wjso.com/content/4/1/49
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Summary:<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Rectal squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) is a rare tumor. The incidence of this malignancy has been reported to be 0.25 to 1 per 1000 colorectal carcinomas. From a review of the English literature 55 cases of SCC of the rectum have been published. In this study we report a rectal metastatic SCC to the liver, discussing the efficacy of aggressive adjuvant and neo-adjuvant therapies on survival and prognosis.</p> <p>Case presentation</p> <p>A 39-year-old female patient with a pure SCC of the rectum diagnosed endoscopically is presented. The patient underwent initially neoadjuvant chemo-radiotherapy and then abdominoperineal resection with concomitant bilateral oophorectomy and hysterectomy, followed by adjuvant chemo-radiotherapy. Five months after the initial operation liver metastasis was demonstrated and a liver resection was carried out, followed by adjuvant chemotherapy. Eighteen months after the initial operation the patient is alive.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Although prognosis of rectal SCC is worse than that of adenocarcinoma, an aggressive therapeutic approach with surgery as the primary treatment, followed by combined neo- and adjuvant chemo-radiotherapy, may be necessary in order to improve survival and prognosis.</p>
ISSN:1477-7819