A novel technique for the treatment of a symptomatic giant colonic lipoma

Abstract

Submucosal lipomas are usually harmless neoplasms arising from submucosal adipocytes. They are found most commonly in the colon, but may develop in any part of the gastrointestinal tract. Most colonic lipomas are asymptomatic and need no treatment, whereas larger ones (>2 cm) may present with abdominal pain, changes in bowel habits, rectal bleeding, and intussusception or prolapse. The literature on the endoscopic resection of colonic lipomas is limited owing to the increased risk of colonic perforation. In this paper, we describe a novel technique for the treatment of colonic obstruction resulting from a giant lipoma by placing two large clips at the narrow base of the lipoma and performing multiple cuttings on the mucosa covering the fatty tissue by using a needle-knife to facilitate the fat's discharge into the colon's lumen. Our case showed that the endoclipping of semi- or pedunculated large colonic lipomas not amenable for endoloop ligation and associated with cuttings of the mucosa covering the fat is a promising new technique, which avoids the risk of perforation or bleeding of the snare cautery, especially in high-risk patients.