Diffuse giant inflammatory polyposis: a challenging clinicopathologic diagnosis

Giant inflammatory polyposis of the colon is an uncommon manifestation of inflammatory bowel disease. We report a unique case of localized diffuse giant inflammatory polyposis in a 58-year-old white man, which was characterized by recurrence following initial surgical resection. The patient presented with symptoms of abdominal pain and passing blood per rectum. Colonoscopic examination revealed a near-obstructing, "fungating" mass in the sigmoid colon, which clinically was thought to represent colon carcinoma. Histology of several colon biopsies revealed marked acute inflammation with microabscess formation of the polyps and the adjacent mucosa. There was no evidence of dysplasia or malignancy. Because malignancy was strongly suspected and to relieve the obstructive symptoms, the patient underwent a segmental colectomy. The histologic features of the resected mass showed giant polyps with acute inflammation diagnostic of giant inflammatory polyposis. Again, there was no evidence of malignancy. Seven months later, following an uneventful initial postoperative recovery, the patient developed a recurrence of the mass with obstructive symptoms and required further surgical resection. The gross and histologic features of the lesion were similar to the previous findings. This case highlights the varied presenting symptoms and deceptive gross colonoscopic and radiologic features of localized diffuse giant inflammatory polyposis. Finally, the presence of inflammation at the resection margins appears to predict recurrence or persistence of the disease.