Atypical presentation of an oesophageal carcinoma with metastases to the left buttock: a case report

Abstract

IntroductionOesophageal carcinomas represent 3% of all cancers in the UK accounting for 7650 new cases per annum. Oesophageal cancer may be associated with swallowing abnormalities, localised mass pressure effects, lymphatic or distant metastatic spread.Case presentationWe report a 50-year-old man who presented with a painful, enlarging, solid, fixed lesion adjacent to the left buttock with associated dysphagia. Initial endoscopic assessment suggested severe oesophageal inflammation while the lesion in the buttock area was presumed to be a primary soft-tissue neoplasm. However, subsequent histological assessment confirmed a primary oesophageal squamous carcinoma with metastatic spread to the buttock.ConclusionWe discuss the clinical presentation, investigative modalities, and current therapeutic guidelines associated with this rare metastasis and present other atypical oesophageal musculoskeletal metastases. We emphasise the need to consider all aspects of patient symptomatology during the investigation of any atypical lesion.

Persistent cough: An unexpected diagnosis

“…Yacouba et al . showed that of 22 reported cases of ECs with unusual presentations, 6 cases presented with osteolytic lesions, 3 cases presented with cutaneous nodules, 2 cases with dyspnea, 2 cases with upper abdominal pain, and 1 case each with gluteal mass,[ 8 ] adrenal mass, thyroid mass,[ 9 ] headache with SOL, solitary jejunal mass, painful breast lump, hip pain, cervical pain, and chronic cough. [ 5 ] Of these 22 cases, 19 were metastatic ECs and only 3 cases were nonmetastatic cancer like our case.…”