Introduction. Cutaneous metastases (CM) from colorectal cancer (CRC) occur in 2.3 – 6% of cases, and are most often located on the abdominal site, but can also be found on the skin of the extremities, head, neck, as well as around the genitalia, and more rarely on the back. Usually, CM from CRC appear two years after diagnosis or after surgical resection, but in extremely rare cases they can be the onset of the disease.
Case presentation. We present the case of a 58-year-old female patient, with a wound and skin changes in the left lumbar region, without any gastrointestinal complaints. An incisional skin biopsy, followed by routine histological and immunohistochemical examinations were performed, which proved a cutaneous metastasis from an intestinal-type adenocarcinoma. One month later, the patient was admitted in emergency with bowel obstruction, and a left hemicolectomy with transversostomy was performed, because of an obstructive tumour in the descending colon. The resected material underwent histological, immunohistochemical and genetic examinations.
Conclusions. CM from CRC are uncommon, indicative of advanced cancer and poor prognosis, and are a very rare finding prior to the diagnosis of the primary tumour and visceral dissemination.
Keywords: cutaneous metastasis, colorectal cancer, immunohistochemistry, microsatellite instability.
Email to Author
Address for correspondence:
Radoslav Georgiev TRIFONOV
Department of Diagnostic imaging and Radiotherapy, Medical University – Pleven
Address: 1, Sv. Kliment Ohridski Str., 5800, Pleven, Bulgaria
E-mail: radoslav_tr@abv.bg
