Spontaneous rupture of the spleen from metastatic carcinoma.

SPONTANEOUS rupture of the spleen without antecedent trauma is occasionally seen in normal spleens and in many diseases including leukemias, lymphomas, primary splenic tumors, and infectious mononucleosis. Spontaneous rupture of the spleen from metastatic carcinoma is exceedingly rare. To our knowledge, only three cases are available in the world literature. The primary sites of these tumors were the urinary bladder, 1 stomach, and malignant melanoma of the skin. 2 Report of a Case A 48-year-old man was admitted to the hospital on Sept 13, 1977, because of weakness. A right upper lobectomy and extrapleural resection of an adherent apical extension of a poorly differentiated largecell carcinoma of the right lung had been performed on June 14, 1977. Postoperatively he had received 5,100 rads radiation to the right hemithorax. He then did well and maintained his weight until four days before admission. At this time, he became nauseated, weak, and experienced