Silent invasion of Hem-O-Lok clip

A 58-year-old man underwent laparoscopy-assisted distal gastrectomy (LADG) with Billroth I gastroduodenostomy due to early gastric cancer. During surgery, the perigastric vessels were ligated with Hem-o-Lok clips. Esophagogastroduodenoscopy (EGD) 6 months later showed a fungating mass at the anastomosis site. Repeat EGD 1 year after LADG showed a Hem-o-Lok clip at the fungating mass lesion. Because the patient was asymptomatic, with no major abnormalities on clinical examination, and endoscopic removal of the clip would have been difficult due to the presence of adhesions and inflammation, no attempt was made to remove the clip. The patient remained well after the exposed Hem-o-Lok clip was identified. A third EGD 6 months later showed that the clip had disappeared from the anastomosis site, and that this site was covered with normal mucosa surrounding the scar.