Endoscopic resection of signet ring cell carcinoma of the duodenal bulb.

Primary duodenal cancer is very rare, accounting for approximately 0.3% of all gastrointestinal cancers. Duodenal cancer is most often located in the descending portion of the duodenum, and cancer of the bulb is exceedingly rare. Additionally, most types of duodenal cancers are histologically differentiated adenocarcinomas, and signet ring cell carcinoma of the duodenum is extremely rare. Since most cases of signet ring cell carcinoma of the duodenum are discovered at an advanced stage, endoscopic treatment is seldom indicated. Here, we report a case of a 72-year-old woman in whom endoscopic treatment was performed for early signet ring cell carcinoma of the duodenum localized in the duodenal bulb, with achievement of curative resection. This is a valuable report of endoscopic curative resection of signet ring cell carcinoma of the duodenal bulb.