An 86-year-old woman's stool sample was positive for blood. Computed tomography (CT) showed wall thickening of the ascending colon at the hepatic flexure. Colonoscopy showed near-complete obturation by colon cancer. Since she was asymptomatic, elective surgery was planned. Laparoscopic right hemicolectomy was performed. Histopathological examination showed poorly differentiated carcinoma cells proliferating in a solid pattern with marked lymphocyte infiltration. The diagnosis was lymphoepithelioma-like carcinoma (LELC) associated with Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) infection; however, EBV-encoded small RNA-in situ hybridization was negative. Microsatellite instability was not assessed. The postoperative course was uneventful and she was discharged on the 15th postoperative day. She remains recurrence-free at 2 years after surgery. Past reports note that colorectal carcinomas with dense lymphoid stroma may be related to LELC or medullary carcinoma (MC). Gastrointestinal LELC is rare, with some reports on LELC of the esophagus and stomach. Reports on LELC of the large intestine are very rare. MC of the large intestine is relatively new concept, firstly described in the WHO Classification of Tumours of the Digestive System 3rd Edition in 2000. We herein present a case of lymphoepithelioma-like carcinoma of the ascending colon and relevant case reports about LELC and MC of the large intestine.
Keywords: Ascending colon cancer; Carcinoma with lymphoid stroma; EBER-ISH (EBV-encoded small RNA-in situ hybridization); Lymphoepithelioma-like carcinoma; Medullary carcinoma.