Secondary rectal linitis plastica as first manifestation of urinary bladder carcinoma
(EN)
Papaziogas, Basilis
Katsinelos, Taxiarchis
Dimou, Eleni
Chatzimavroudis, Grigoris
Terzoudis, Sotiris
Lazaraki, Georgia
Katsinelos, Panagiotis
Kamperis, Eustathios
Atmatzidis, Stefanos
Beltsis, Athanasios
Secondary rectal linitis plastica is a very rare malignancy with poor prognosis. Diagnosis is difficult because of nonspecific clinical and endoscopic findings and negative biopsies in most cases owing to the fact that the mucosa is frequently unaffected. We herein describe a 68-year-old man who presented with a six-month history of tenesmus and constipation. Endoscopy revealed a narrow distal rectum with an indurated, cobblestone appearance of mucosa. Multiple biopsies and fine-needle aspiration were negative for malignancy. Abdominal MRI and transrectal ultrasonography showed findings compatible with rectal linitis plastica. He underwent rectal extirpation with total cystectomy and lymph nodes dissection. Histology demonstrated secondary rectal linitis plastica due to a poorly differentiated urinary bladder carcinoma. We emphasize the endoscopic and endosonographic features and the difficulty to establish a preoperative diagnosis of secondary rectal linitis plastica.Keywords secondary rectal linitis plastica, urinary bladder carcinomaAnn Gastroenterol 2012; 25 (2): 173-175
(EN)