Unusual Duodenal Ulcer: Metastatic Urothelial Carcinoma of the Renal Pelvis

Metastatic urothelial carcinoma of the renal pelvis (MUCP), a type of metastatic upper tract urothelial carcinoma (MUTUC), is a rare malignancy, and some patients with MUCP present with distant metastasis at the time of diagnosis. MUCP in the gastrointestinal tract is even rarer. Herein, we report a 78-year-old man with MUCP that presented as a duodenal ulcer. He complained of anorexia, dizziness, and melena for one month. Endoscopic examination at a local clinic revealed a duodenal hemorrhagic and ulcerative lesion, and the patient was referred. He noted dark-colored stools with increasing frequency, but he denied hematochezia, coffee ground emesis, weight changes, or abdominal pain. Gastroduodenoscopic examination at our hospital demonstrated an ulcerofungating lesion of the second portion of the duodenum. Colonoscopic findings showed no abnormality. Computed tomography showed a 6.7 cm sized mass abutting the inferior vena cava, second portion of the duodenum, lower pole of the right kidney, and right iliopsoas. The mass showed heterogeneous enhancement and internal hemorrhagic necrosis and infiltrated the perinephric soft tissues, the second portion of the duodenum, the right psoas muscle, the right renal vein, and the right adrenal gland. Duodenal biopsy showed moderately differentiated squamous cell carcinoma. Immunohistochemistry (IHC) showed diffuse and strong positivity for CK5/6. Tissue from the liver biopsy showed similar histopathologic features and showed GATA3 positivity on IHC. The imprint cytology smears of the liver tissue showed cercariform cell features. We confirmed the diagnosis as MUCP. This case illustrated a rare cause of a secondary duodenal tumor, MUCP.

Automated summary

A rare case of metastatic urothelial carcinoma of the renal pelvis presenting as a duodenal ulcer in a 78-year-old male patient is reported. Endoscopic examination revealed an ulcerative lesion in the duodenum, while colonoscopy showed no abnormalities. Computed tomography revealed tumor infiltration in multiple tissues. Histopathology and immunohistochemistry confirmed the diagnosis of metastatic urothelial carcinoma.