A case of superior mesenteric artery syndrome due to peritoneal seeding in a colon cancer patient

Small bowel obstruction can develop from adhesions, hernias, and less frequently from tumors. Superior mesenteric artery (SMA) syndrome is an uncommon cause of small bowel obstruction. We experienced a case of SMA syndrome caused by peritoneal seeding from colon cancer. A 57-year-old woman presented with nausea, post-prandial vomiting, and weight loss. She had been receiving palliative chemotherapy for 12 months to treat colon cancer with peritoneal seeding. Abdominal computed tomography and a small bowel series revealed typical findings of SMA syndrome. As conservative treatment including nutritional support and positional change was ineffective, she was treated surgically. An adhesive mass compressing the SMA and duodenum was found at the third portion of the duodenum. The pathologic diagnosis was metastatic adenocarcinoma of colorectal origin. Adhesiolysis and duodenojejunostomy relieved her symptoms. This case shows that SMA syndrome can develop via peritoneal seeding in cancer patients.