Adenocarcinoma of the small bowel in a patient with occlusive Crohn’s disease

Abstract

A 40-year-old male, diagnosed with mild Crohn’s disease (CD) 11 years ago but with no prior abdominal surgeries, was diagnosed with a small bowel stricture, due to ongoing abdominal pain and intolerance of enteral diet, and referred for surgical treatment. Exploratory laparoscopy revealed a white solid mass causing a near total jejunal obstruction with significant proximal dilatation. An adjacent small node was sampled for frozen biopsy, revealing a lymph node infiltrated with adenocarcinoma. Laparoscopic assisted small bowel resection and appendectomy were carried out. Final pathological results supported the initial report of diffuse small bowel adenocarcinoma. In conclusion, once a small bowel stricture associated with CD is suspected, rapid action should be considered to avoid late diagnosis of a neoplasia.

Keywords: Inflammatory bowel disease; Crohn’s disease; Small bowel obstruction; Small bowel stricture; Small bowel adenocarcinoma