AbstractBackground: Colorectal cancer is the third most common cancer worldwide, and as such is a significant global health concern. Distant metastases of colorectal cancer to the lung, liver and bone are well documented, while gastrointestinal tract (GIT) metastases are very rare. Herein, we report a case of gastric metastasis from sigmoid colon cancer.Case summary: A 78-year-old male was diagnosed with both gastric and colorectal cancer, which occurred synchronously. The presence of two primary cancers was diagnosed, and radical subtotal gastrectomy and anterior resection were performed simultaneously. The postoperative pathology report showed a moderately differentiated adenocarcinoma in the sigmoid colon and stomach. Immunohistochemical (IHC) analysis revealed that the resected gastric specimens showed tumor cells that were positive for both cytokeratin 20 (CK20) and caudal-type homeobox gene 2 (CDX2), and negative for CK7. This confirmed that the gastric lesion was a metastasis from colorectal cancer.Conclusion: Clinicians should be aware of the potential presence of metastatic gastric cancer, whether synchronous or metachronous, in other solid organ malignancies.Key word: Sigmoid neoplasm; Neoplasm metastasis; Stomach neoplasm; Synchronous; Case reportCore tip: We report a case of gastric metastasis from sigmoid colon cancer. A 78-year-old male was diagnosed gastric cancer and colorectal cancer that occurred synchronously. We performed radical subtotal gastrectomy and anterior resection simultaneously. The postoperative pathology report showed a moderately differentiated adenocarcinoma in the sigmoid colon and stomach. IHC analysis revealed that resected gastric specimens showed tumor cells stained positive for CK20 and CDX2, and negative for CK7. The IHC analysis confirmed that the gastric lesion was metastasis from colorectal cancer. Clinicians should be aware of the potential presence of metastatic gastric cancer in other malignancies of solid organs.INTRODUCTIONColorectal cancer is the third most common cancer worldwide and the second leading cause of cancer-related mortality in the world.[1] Approximately 20% of patients with colorectal cancer already have metastases at the time of initial diagnosis with the liver (50%) and lung (10-15%) being the most commonly involved sites of metastasis from colorectal cancer. Primary cancers from other organs rarely metastasis to the stomach. The rarity of stomach metastasis from colorectal cancer is further supported by a large-scale autopsy study, which reported a range of 0.7-5.4% for gastric metastases across various cancers, indicating that colorectal contributes only minimally within this range.[2] Here, we report a notable case of synchronous metastasis to the stomach in a sigmoid colon cancer patient.CASE PRESENTATIONChief complaints and history of present illness: A 78-year-old male underwent upper and lower endoscopy as part of a routine health examination.History of past illness: The patients had an Alzheimer’s diseaseLaboratory examinations: The carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) level was 0.87 ng/mlImaging examinations: The esophagogastroduodenoscopy (EGD) revealed a 3x2cm ulcerofungating mass in the lesser curvature side of the mid antrum of the stomach (Figure 1A), and a colonoscopy showed a 4x2cm ulcerofungating mass in the distal sigmoid colon, located 16cm from the anal verge (Figure 1B). The pathological examination of the endoscopic biopsy specimens obtained from the stomach and sigmoid colon indicated well-differentiated adenocarcinoma, which showed similar histologic characteristics with each other. The abdominal computed tomography (CT) scan revealed a tumor involving the antrum to pylorus with peri-gastric infiltration (Figure 2A) and a 5.5 cm sized mass at the distal sigmoid colon (Figure 2B). On positron emission tomography/CT (PET/CT) imaging, only the gastric and colon mass were observed. The diagnosis of double primary cancer was made, and radical subtotal gastrectomy and anterior resection were performed simultaneously.FINAL DIAGNOSISThe postoperative pathology report revealed a moderately differentiated adenocarcinoma in the sigmoid colon (Figure 3A) and stomach (Figure 3B). The Immunohistochemical (IHC) analysis of the gastric lesion showed positive staining for CK20 (Figure 4A) and CDX2 (Figure 4B), and negative staining for CK7 (Figure 4C). These results suggest that the cancer of the sigmoid colon had metastasized to the stomach. The patient recovered uneventfully and was discharged 10 days after surgery without complications. The patient had combined targeted agents with standard cytotoxic chemotherapy.TREATMENTThe initial diagnosis of double primary cancer was made, and radical subtotal gastrectomy and anterior resection were performed simultaneously. The postoperative pathology showed gastric metastasis of sigmoid colon cancer, the patient had combined targeted agents with standard cytotoxic chemotherapy.OUTCOME AND FOLLOW-UPA five-year follow-up was conducted on the patient; this case was then closed due to the absence of evidence of metastasis.DISCUSSIONThe determination of the true incidence of metastasis to the stomach is challenging due to its low prevalence. Several studies have reported an incidence of 0.2-0.8% [3-6] and autopsy studies have reported higher incidences of 1.7-5.4% [4,7-9]. Studies based on autopsy results conducted on individuals with certain neoplasms are a reliable source of actual incidence data.Gastric metastasis from colorectal cancer is rarely documented in the literature [3,4,8,10] and only one case has been reported, found during a routine health check-up with no symptoms. Patients diagnosed with gastric metastasis may present with various symptoms. Green et al. documented that among the ten cases identified through surgical biopsy, notable clinical symptoms and physical examination outcomes encompassed diffuse abdominal pain, nausea and vomiting, anorexia, guaiac-positive stools, and gastrointestinal bleeding.[4]Previous studies have demonstrated that endoscopic patterns, including multiple nodules, bull’s eye pattern, exophytic mass lesions, ulcers, and multiple tumors, are prevalent and characteristic. These findings are often accompanied by doughnut-shaped ridged lesions and volcanic ulcers. These endoscopic patterns have been shown to be useful in the diagnosis of gastric metastases.[11] However, some cases of gastric metastasis are difficult to distinguish from primary gastric cancer.[10,12] Hirano K et al. reported that more than half were solitary metastases. Despite the heterogeneity of the morphologies observed, approximately half of the cases exhibited a resemblance to early gastric cancer.[13] In the present study, EGD revealed an ulcerofungating mass with mucosal invasion, which was diagnosed as typical primary gastric cancer rather than metastatic gastric cancer.In the field of cancer research, a significant body of literature has emerged on the use of immunohistochemical testing for the identification of carcinomas of unknown primary origin. A seminal study by Bayrak R et al. reported the expression of CK7 in upper GIT tumors, whereas CK20 was found to be predominantly expressed in lower GIT tumors.[14] Building on this, Park SY et al. undertook a comprehensive evaluation of multiple immunohistochemical markers for each tumor with the aim of determining the combination of the 10 markers that most effectively predicted primary sites.[15] The most predictive multi-marker phenotypes, as determined by a combination of specificity and positive predictive value, were CDX2+/CK7-/CK20+ for colorectal primary tumors and CDX2+/CK7+/CK20- for upper GI tumors. The patient in question had a CK7-/CK20+ pattern and positive staining for CDX2.In the management of metastatic colorectal cancer, curative surgery is widely accepted as the preferred method for the removal of resectable metastases in the lung or liver. However, for metastases in extremely rare sites, such as the stomach, a consensus on the optimal approach has yet to be established.[16] Nushijima et al. reported a case.[17] A 52-year-old woman was diagnosed with transverse colon cancer, underwent left hemicolectomy and received adjuvant XELOX therapy for 6 months. One year and 3 months after left hemicolectomy, EGD revealed a submucosal tumor in the stomach and histology showed metastatic gastric cancer from transverse colon cancer. Radical distal gastrectomy was performed, but peritoneal dissemination and para-aortic lymph node recurrence were noted 7 months after the second surgery. The prognosis is generally poor because gastric involvement typically indicates an advanced stage of disease and is often associated with metastases to other sites. In our case, metastatic lesion in the stomach were diagnosed simultaneously with the diagnosis of colorectal cancer. Radical resection was performed on both sites with a favorable prognosis. Therefore, it is imperative to perform EGD in patients diagnosed with colorectal cancer.CONCLUSIONTumor metastases to distant anatomical structures can disrupt normal function and significantly increase disease morbidity and mortality. Consequently, metastases from a known primary cancer have a critical impact on staging, prognosis, and treatment strategies. In addition, cancers that initially present with distant metastases often require extensive evaluation to identify the primary site and guide optimal treatment. In conclusion, clinicians should be aware of the potential presence of metastatic gastric cancer, whether synchronous or metachronous, in other solid organ malignancies. 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