A case of lymphoepithelioma-like carcinoma of the rectum

Lymphoepithelioma-like carcinoma in the digestive tract is rare, particularly in the rectum. A 60-yearold woman diagnosed with rectal cancer was referred to our clinic for laparoscopic abdominoperineal resection of the rectum. The resected specimen was a type 2 lesion, 35 × 30 mm in size, located along the pectinate line of the left rectal wall. Histopathological staining showed a sheet of foci and a cord-like arrangement with loosely coupled and isolated tumor cells associated with a stroma composed of dense lymphocyte/plasma cell infiltrates, representative of lymphoepithelioma-like carcinoma. The patient was diagnosed with lymphoepithelioma-like carcinoma of the rectum, underwent resection without adjuvant chemotherapy, and remains disease free. This report describes a valuable case of rare lymphoepitheliomalike carcinoma of the rectum.