A case of multiple intussusceptions in the small intestine caused by metastatic renal cell carcinoma

Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) may metastasize to almost any organ, but metastasis to the small bowel is rare. Small bowel metastasis from RCC can induce obstruction or bleeding, and perforation can also be induced in rare case. Yet RCC metastasis to the small bowel is unlikely to be a direct cause of intussusceptions. A few cases of intussusceptions caused by small intestinal metastasis of RCC have been reported, but multiple small intestinal intussusceptions are extremely rare. We report here on a 47-year-old male patient who presented to the emergency room with acute abdominal pain. He had undergone radical nephrectomy 2 years previously due to left RCC. The abdominal CT scan revealed enhanced masses with the "target" sign that suggested enteric intussusceptions in the jejunum. Eight pedunculated masses within the small intestinal lumen led to intussusceptions at 30 and 150 cm distal to Treitz ligament. Three segmental resections of the small intestine and functional end to end anastomosis were done. The patient recovered uneventfully from this operation. To the best of our knowledge, this is the 1(st) report of metastases from RCC that presented as synchronous intraluminal polypoid tumors, and these tumors served as the lead points for two intussusceptions in the jejunum.