An exceptional case of a duodenal metastasis from a nasopharyngeal carcinoma

Abstract

Nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is a common head and neck cancer. The involvement of the digestive tract is exceptional. Herein we report the case of a 32-year-old man who initially presented with a T3N3M0 NPC according to the 7th edition of American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC) tumor/node/metastasis (TNM) classifications. The patient had a complete response after a treatment based on radiotherapy and concomitant chemotherapy. Fifteen months later, he presented with digestive symptoms. After explorations, radiological and histological findings concluded to a duodenal relapse of his NPC To our knowledge, this is the first case of a duodenal metastasis of a NPC reported in the literature.

Keywords

• Nasopharyngeal carcinoma
• Metastasis
• Digestive tract
• Duodenum