We report a case of obstructive ileitis (OI) secondary to colon cancer. A 62-year-old man was hospitalized for abdominal pain
and a feeling of fullness. Examinations revealed a mechanical ileus caused by an obstructing carcinomatous lesion of the cecum.
He underwent laparotomy on the tenth hospital day, and a right hemicolectomy was carried out with resection of the distended
and edematous ileum. The histopathologic diagnosis was adenocarcinoma in the cecum involving the ileocecal valve and nonspecific
inflammatory change of the ileum, with mucosal necrosis and neutrophilic infiltration involving the subserosal layer. His
postoperative course was uneventful. OI does not always show similar histological features to obstructive colitis; however,
they are both important types of obstructing lesions, and their possibility must be kept in mind during colorectal cancer
surgery.
Key words Obstructive colitis - Obstructive ileitis - Colorectal cancer
Received: March 4, 2002 / Accepted: July 2, 2002
Reprint requests to: T. Matsuda