Metastatic adenocarcinoma from the colon to the mandible

Published reports of metastatic adenocarcinoma from the colon or rectum to the mandible are extremely rare. Only eight cases had been reported from 1884 to the time this article was written. A case is presented where a metastatic lesion was found to be histologically similar to the known primary tumor in the cecum. The patient first noted dental pain, isolated to his mandibular left second bicuspid, 10 months after a primary tumor was diagnosed. Subsequently, the tooth was extracted, and it was only after the extraction site failed to heal that a biopsy was performed which confirmed a metastatic lesion. Retrospective study of the preextraction radiograph confirmed the presence of a suspicious area in the osseous structure of the mandible at the time of extraction. It must be emphasized that in patients with a positive history of malignancy, metastatic disease must be considered in the differential diagnosis of oral and dental symptoms, and that need for biopsy should be considered with all surgical procedures, including simple extractions.