Testicular Signet-Ring Cell Metastasis from a Carcinoma of Unknown Primary Site: A Case Report and Literature Review

Signet-ring cell carcinoma is a highly malignant adenocarcinoma consisting of cells characterized as cytoplasmic vacuoles filledwith mucin. The most common primary location of this type of cancer is the stomach, but it may also be found in other organssuch as prostate, testis, bladder, ovaries, or colon. To date, metastatic signet-ring cell carcinoma of unknown primary (CUP) siteto the testis is an extremely rare entity in daily practice. Reviewing the literature, we have been able to detect only three cases oftesticular metastases from CUP, two with histological diagnosis of a signet-ring cell carcinoma and one with an adenocarcinoma.In this short paper, we report a case of a 56-year-old man who presented to our Department with testicular mass and ascites.Following a standard diagnostic approach no primary tumor could be identified. CUP was the final clinical diagnosis, histologicallycharacterized as poorly differentiated adenocarcinoma with signet-ring cells involving the peritoneum and the testicular structures.