Perianal paget's disease years after rectal adenocarcinoma removal

BACKGROUND. Perianal Paget's disease often coincides with anorectal carcinoma, which extends into the epidermis from a contiguous organ. OBJECTIVE. Our purpose was to present a patient with perianal Paget's disease who had a rectal adenocarcinoma excised 14 years previously in another hospital and to determine whether there is a relationship between the perianal Paget's disease and the rectal adenocarcinoma. METHODS. We examined the resected specimens of the rectal adenocarcinoma and the perianal Paget's disease histologically. RESULTS. In the resected specimen of the rectal adenocarcinoma, Paget cells were present within the anal epidermis adjacent to the rectal adenocarcinoma. The Paget cells showed the same histochemical and immunohistological findings as the adenocarcinoma cells. CONCLUSION. There was a close relationship between the perianal Paget's disease and the rectal adenocarcinoma. It is probable that the Paget cells were derived from direct spread from the rectal adenocarcinoma.