title: Small bowel tumours: a diagnostic challenge.
abstract: In a 20-year retrospective study of 43 patients having surgery for small bowel neoplasia in a district general hospital, the commonest pathologies were lymphoma (12), carcinoid (12) and adenocarcinoma (11). Malignant neoplasms occurred in 38 patients presenting on average at 68 years of age. In 4 patients a synchronous gastrointestinal neoplasm was found. The average duration of symptoms was 11 weeks for operated patients. In 31 patients the presentation was as a surgical emergency. Only 10 had imaging investigations prior to emergency presentation from which diagnostic information was obtained in 1 patient and helpful information in a further 4. The 5-year survival figures of patients with small bowel neoplasia were carcinoid (50%), lymphoma (27%) and adenocarcinoma (15%), reflecting the poor prognosis of these patients even after 'curative resection'. Patients with carcinoid tumours were the exception, as long-term survival was not unusual even without complete resection of all macroscopic disease.
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, St Richard's Hospital, Chichester, UK.
authors.forename: C T
authors.initials: CT
authors.lastname: Baillie
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Williams
mesh_terms: D000230:Adenocarcinoma / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D007414:Intestinal Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery; D007421:Intestine, Small / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery; D007889:Leiomyoma / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery; D008223:Lymphoma / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009442:Neurilemmoma / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery; D015996:Survival Rate