Rectal Cancer With a Solitary Metastasis in the Thigh

This colorectal cancer diagnosis at a glance

Subtype
Adenocarcinoma
Sex
Male
Spread to
right proximal thigh skeletal muscle
Treatment
surgery, radiation and chemotherapy
Outcome
Setback / Progression

Treatment course, step by step

  1. He underwent abdominoperineal resection in September 2014.
  2. Adjuvant radiotherapy was completed in May 2017, and chemotherapy was completed in March 2018.
  3. Excision of the residual thigh metastasis followed by more chemotherapy was planned.

What happened, in summary

A 48-year-old man had high-grade mucinous adenocarcinoma of the rectum. He underwent abdominoperineal resection in September 2014, followed by adjuvant radiotherapy completed in May 2017 and chemotherapy completed in March 2018.

During chemotherapy in November 2017, doctors noticed a mass in the upper right thigh. Biopsy and immunohistochemical testing confirmed that it was a metastasis from the rectal primary. PET/CT on May 29, 2018 showed residual activity in the thigh mass but no other active metastatic site. In particular, there was no active disease in the liver or lungs.

Because the thigh lesion appeared to be the only remaining metastasis, the care plan was surgical removal of the mass followed by another course of chemotherapy.

Where this story comes from

This is a lay summary of an account first published by PMC / PubMed Central. Read the original in full

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