Case Report
Copyright ©The Author(s) 2022. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Clin Cases. Jan 21, 2022; 10(3): 1122-1130
Published online Jan 21, 2022. doi: 10.12998/wjcc.v10.i3.1122
Recurrence of sigmoid colon cancer–derived anal metastasis: A case report and review of literature
Ling-Kang Meng, Dan Zhu, Yu Zhang, Yuan Fang, Wei-Zhen Liu, Xia-Qing Zhang, Yong Zhu
Ling-Kang Meng, Dan Zhu, Yu Zhang, Yuan Fang, Wei-Zhen Liu, Xia-Qing Zhang, Yong Zhu, Department of Colorectal Surgery, Nanjing Hospital of Chinese Medicine Affiliated to Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine, Nanjing 210022, Jiangsu Province, China
Author contributions: Meng LK analyzed the data and drafted the manuscript; Zhu D and Zhang Y collected the data; Fang Y and Liu WZ performed pathological evaluations; Zhang XQ analyzed the results of diagnostic imaging; Zhu Y revised the manuscript; all authors read and approved the final version of the manuscript.
Supported by Nanjing Municipal Health Bureau, No. NWQR-201702; and Nanjing Translational Medicine Base of Chinese Medicine, No. ZHZD201802.
Informed consent statement: Written informed consent was obtained from the patient‘s next of kin, for publication of this case report and any accompanying images. A copy of the written consent is available for review by the Editor-in-Chief of this journal.
Conflict-of-interest statement: The authors declare no competing interests.
CARE Checklist (2016) statement: The authors have read the CARE Checklist (2016), and the manuscript was prepared and revised according to the CARE Checklist (2016).
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Yong Zhu, PhD, Chief Doctor, Department of Colorectal Surgery, Nanjing Hospital of Chinese Medicine Affiliated to Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine, No. 157 Daming Road, Qinhuai District, Nanjing 210022, Jiangsu Province, China. zhuyong839@sina.com
Received: July 14, 2021
Peer-review started: July 14, 2021
First decision: October 22, 2021
Revised: October 26, 2021
Accepted: December 25, 2021
Article in press: December 25, 2021
Published online: January 21, 2022
Processing time: 184 Days and 23.3 Hours
Abstract
BACKGROUND

Distant metastasis of colorectal cancer to the anus is very rare, with only 30 related cases published in PubMed thus far. Therefore, recurrence of colorectal cancer derived anus metastases is rarely seen and less presented.

CASE SUMMARY

Here we report an 80-year-old male patient who underwent radical resection for sigmoid colon cancer in January 2010 and another surgery for anal fistula resection in December 2010. Postoperative pathology of the anal fistula revealed a metastatic moderately differentiated adenocarcinoma. The patient subsequently received chemotherapy and radiotherapy. In May 2020, after the patient reported symptoms of anal swelling and pain, computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging revealed a perianal abscess. Perianal mass biopsy was performed, and the postoperative pathological diagnosis was metastatic moderately differentiated adenocarcinoma.

CONCLUSION

This case highlights that there is a risk of recurrence of anal metastasis of colorectal cancer even after 10 years of follow-up. We also reviewed the literature and discuss potential mechanisms for anal metastasis of colorectal cancer, thus providing some suggestions for treatment of these cases.

Keywords: Sigmoid colon cancer; Colorectal cancer; Anal metastasis; Recurrence; Case report

Core Tip: Metastasis of colorectal cancer to the anus is very rare. We describe a patient who had a local anal metastatic recurrence after chemotherapy and local anal radiotherapy. This case highlights that there is a risk of recurrence of anal metastasis of colorectal cancer even after 10 years of follow-up.