Adenocarcinoma of the Appendix: an Unusual Disease.

Objective: To describe our experience with primary appendiceal tumours. Design: Retrospective study. Setting: University hospital, Israel. Subjects: 2 520 patients who had appendicectomies during the 14 years, January 1982–December 1996. Results: 22 patients 5 male and 17 female, mean age 56.2 years, had primary neoplasms; 14 were carcinoid tumours and villous adenomas and were treated by appendicectomy only. Adenocarcinoma was diagnosed in 8 patients (0.3%), 5 after appendicectomy (0.2%) which is twice the reported incidence. They were all treated by right hemicolectomy. Seven of the patients were classified as Dukes' B and one as Dukes' C. All patients were alive and disease-free after a mean follow-up period of 57.4 months. Conclusion: Right hemicolectomy is the treatment of choice for adenocarcinoma of the appendix. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]