Neuroendocrine tumor of the colon

What it is

A rare epithelial tumor of the large intestine, arising from enterochromaffin cells, most commonly in the cecum or ascending colon. The tumor is usually slow-growing and can be diagnosed as an incidental finding in an asymptomatic patient, while in the later stages patients can present with abdominal pain, palpable abdominal mass, changes in bowel habits, signs of bowel obstruction, gastrointestinal bleeding, anorexia, weight loss or, rarely, carcinoid syndrome (facial flushing, diarrhea, tachycardia, hypo- and hypertension, cardiac abnormalities).

Key facts

Age of onset

Adult, Elderly

Classified as

Disease

Signs and symptoms

These ranges are how often a sign appears across everyone diagnosed, not a prediction for one person — most people have some of these and not others. Orphanet also records findings that are specifically absent in this disease; those are in the data but not listed here.

ICD-10 codes

ICD-10 has no distinct code for most rare diseases, so many are filed under the nearest available one. A shared code identifies the group, not this disease — the ORPHAcode above is what identifies it.

Related health topics

Reached through the ICD-10 categories this disease is filed under, so these describe the broader group rather than this disease specifically.

Cross-references