Ruptured Solitary Splenic Metastasis of Gastric Cancer after Gastric Cancer Operation

ABSTRACT

Solitary malignant splenic metastasis is uncommon and usually occurs in association with widely disseminated metastatic disease. Splenic metastasis usually occurs late in the disease course, with widespread involvement of other organs and rarely shows any presenting symptoms. Virtually all primary tumors have been known to metastasize to the spleen. The common ones include melanoma, lung, breast and ovary cancer, but metastasis from gastric cancer is very rare. When solitary spleen metastasis is suspected in a clinical setting, aggressive treatment is indicated such as splenectomy followed by combined modality treatment to prevent dissemination of the disease. We experienced a case of solitary spleen metastasis and rupture after gastric cancer operation and reviewed the associated literatures.