Formation of the upper digestive tract by the ileum - right colon for patient with concurrent cancers of the esophagus and the stomach: A case report

INTRODUCTION AND IMPORTANCE: A very rare case with presence of both esophageal and gastric cancers raised questions on how to perform optimal surgery for such cases. To date, reports on experimental surgery strategies for these rare cases remained sparse in the literatures. CASE PRESENTATION: A 61-year-old male patient having epigastric abdominal pain and swallowing difficulties for a month prior to the hospital. Esophagoscopy and gastroscopy results showed a 2-cm lesion in the esophagus, located around 25 cm away from the teeth arch; and a 2-cm ulcer lesion with high ridge line at the corner of the lesser curvature of stomach. Biopsy results revealed esophageal squamous epithelium carcinoma and poorly differentiated gastric adenocarcinoma. The surgery was esophago-gastrectomy with curettage of the lymph nodes and reconstruction of the upper gastrointestinal tract with the ileum – right colon in the left side of the neck. CLINICAL DISCUSSION: We did not remain the stomach and performed thoracoscopic Ivor Lewis esophagectomy with chest anastomosis, as in previous studies to prevent cancer recurrence. Here, we performed a new surgical method of reconstruct the upper gastrointestinal tract by connecting the upper part of the esophagus at the neck, to the ileum – right colon. CONCLUSIONS: This case could suggest an effective surgical strategy that the ileum - right colon was an organ to be used in replacing the upper gastrointestinal tract in cases of removing the entire stomach and thoracic esophagus, which could serve as a valuable reference for similar rare cases in the future.