Adenocarcinoma of the appendix.

Sixteen instances of adenocarcinoma of the appendix treated at Roswell Park Memorial Institute between 1964 and 1986 were reviewed. Thirteen of 15 were mucinous and ten were well differentiated. Synchronous metastases were present in 11 patients, with carcinomatosis being the most common pattern of metastases (nine patients). Seven of eight women had ovarian metastases. Nine of the 11 patients with metastatic disease presented with complaints referrable to the metastatic site. The five year survival rate was 50 per cent in the eight patients who underwent right hemicolectomy and 25 per cent in the four patients who underwent appendectomy. The data from this review support right hemicolectomy as the treatment of choice for adenocarcinoma of the appendix. The prolonged survival time of patients with metastatic disease and the symptomatic nature of that disease support the application of palliative oophorectomy in patients with ovarian metastases.