ABSTRACT

Primary non-carcinoid adenocarcinoma of the appendix is rare. Likewise, distant metastatisis of another organ or system cancer is even more rare. Generally, gastric adenocarcinoma may clinically be detected while it is spreaded. A 31-year-old man who had no specific medical history was admitted to the clinic with complaint of right lower abdominal quadrant pain and rebound tenderness over McBurney’s point. Laparotomy was performed for a diagnosis of acute appendicitis. Histopathological examination revealed an obstruction of the appendicular lumen due to adenocarcinoma metastasis. Correspondingly, the patient was re-evaluated to detect the primary malignancy focus and underwent inoperable gastric adenocarcinoma diagnosis.

As our knowledge, there is only one other example in the literature; a patient with undiagnosed gastric cancer who had an acute appendicitis as the first clinical manifestation of an upper gastrointestinal malignancy. Thus we want to share this unusual, interesting and complicated case.