Case Report
Copyright ©The Author(s) 2022. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Clin Cases. Feb 16, 2022; 10(5): 1630-1638
Published online Feb 16, 2022. doi: 10.12998/wjcc.v10.i5.1630
Small-cell carcinoma of the prostate with negative CD56, NSE, Syn, and CgA indicators: A case report
Hong-Jin Shi, Zhi-Nan Fan, Jin-Song Zhang, Bo-Bo Xiong, Hai-Feng Wang, Jian-Song Wang
Hong-Jin Shi, Zhi-Nan Fan, Jin-Song Zhang, Bo-Bo Xiong, Hai-Feng Wang, Jian-Song Wang, Department of Urology, The Second Affiliated Hospital, Kunming Medical University, Kunming 650000, Yunnan Province, China
Author contributions: Shi HJ and Fan ZN collected the data, reviewed the literature, and contributed to manuscript drafting; Xiong BB performed the histological analyses and interpretation; Zhang JS and Wang HF was responsible for the revision of the manuscript for important intellectual content; all authors issued final approval for the version to be submitted.
Supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China, No. 81972395, and No. 82060464.
Informed consent statement: Informed written consent was obtained from the patient for publication of this report and any accompanying images.
Conflict-of-interest statement: The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.
CARE Checklist (2016) statement: The authors have read the CARE Checklist (2016), and the manuscript was prepared and revised according to the CARE Checklist (2016).
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Jin-Song Zhang, Doctor, Doctor, Department of Urology, The Second Affiliated Hospital, Kunming Medical University, No. 374 Dianmian Road, Kunming 650000, Yunnan Province, China. 945933392zjs@sina.com
Received: August 1, 2021
Peer-review started: August 1, 2021
First decision: November 7, 2021
Revised: November 14, 2021
Accepted: December 31, 2021
Article in press: December 31, 2021
Published online: February 16, 2022
Processing time: 193 Days and 21.3 Hours
Abstract
BACKGROUND

Small-cell carcinoma of the prostate (SCCP) is a clinically rare malignant tumor, accounting for < 1% of all prostate tumors. However, negativity for all SCCP neuroendocrine markers is rare. Herein, we report a case of SCCP with completely negative neuroendocrine markers and explore its clinicopathologic features, thus improving the understanding of its clinical diagnosis and management.

CASE SUMMARY

We report the case of a 48-year-old patient with SCCP negative for common sensitive neuroendocrine-staining indicators. Dysuria was the first symptom, and rectal examination revealed a hard prostate, palpable nodules, diffuse prostate enlargement, no pressure pain, no blood staining in the finger sleeve, 1.33 ng/mL total prostate-specific antigen level, and a free-to-total prostate-specific antigen ratio of 0.21 ng/mL. Ultrasound suggested a prostate size of 5.3 cm × 5.8 cm × 5.6 cm, and magnetic resonance imaging suggested prostate cancer. The lower posterior bladder wall, rectal mesentery, and bilateral seminal vesicles were invaded, with multiple lymph node metastases in the pelvis. A whole-body bone scan suggested an abnormally active multiple bone metabolism and possible bone metastases. Head and lungs computed tomography revealed no significant nodal shadow. Following a pathological diagnosis of SCCP after a prostate puncture, with negative indicators of common sensitive neuroendocrine staining, chemotherapy was administered; the patient died 4-5 mo after SCCP diagnosis.

CONCLUSION

SCCP is a rare disease characterized by atypical clinical symptoms, limited treatment options, a short survival period, and a poor prognosis.

Keywords: Prostate cancer; Small cell carcinoma; Neuroendocrine tumor; Therapeutics; Diagnosis; Case report

Core Tip: Small cell carcinoma of the prostate (SCCP) is a very rare type of prostate tumor, generally characterized by low differentiation, high malignancy, rapid growth, easy diffusion, and poor prognosis. Among SCCP types, mixed SCCP is relatively common, completely simple SCCP is rarely reported, and SCCP with negative neuroendocrine markers is even rarer. This study reports a rare case of SCCP with completely negative neuroendocrine markers, and it found SCCP to be characterized by atypical clinical symptoms, limited treatment options, a short survival period, and a poor prognosis, requiring pathological examination to confirm its diagnosis.