Gastrocolic Fistula as a Presentation of Concomitant Gastric and Colon Cancer in a Patient with a History of Metastatic Pancreatic Adenocarcinoma

Excerpt

First described in 1755 as a complication of gastric carcinoma by Albrecht von Haller, gastrocolic fistula (GCF) is an abnormal communication between the transverse colon and the stomach. The most common cause of GCF in Japan and Eastern countries is gastric cancer, compared to transverse colon adenocarcinoma in the Western world [1]. In both regions of the globe, however, GCF remains a rare complication of colonic adenocarcinoma. Typical presentation involves malnutrition, abdominal pain, nausea-vomiting (usually feculent), weight loss, diarrhea, and fecal halitosis [2]. Our reported patient had a long history of pancreatic cancer for which she initially received radiation therapy and partial pancreatectomy, in addition to postoperative diagnosis of metastatic gastric and colon adenocarcinoma, all of which can contribute to the development of this GCF. …