Abstract

A gastric metastasis is an extremely rare event accounting for 0.2 to 0.7% of gastric neoplasms seen at necropsy. Primary origins of a gastric metastasis are pancreatic cancers, colon cancers, lung cancers and malignant melanomas. A renal cell carcinoma is renowned for its metastatic potential to spread to almost any organ of the body. However, a gastric metastasis of a renal cell carcinoma is very rare. It is believed that a renal cell carcinoma metastasizes hematogenously and it spreads through a renal vein to the stomach via the inferior vena cava and hemiazygos vein. A metastasis to the stomach is frequently located in the greater curvature of body. Endoscopic findings of a gastric metastasis often resemble a submucosal tumor with or without ulcer. Presenting symptoms are bleeding, anemia, or pyloric obstruction, but often the patient is asymptomatic. We report a case and review of the literature of a metastatic renal cell carcinoma to the stomach in a 71-year-old man who complained of a palpable abdominal mass. (Korean J Gastrointest Endosc 2008;36:288-291)

• Keywords: Renal cell carcinoma, Stomach, Metastasis