Background: Studies with limited sample sizes have found colorectal signet ring carcinoma (SRC), to be prognostically similar to high grade adenocarcinoma (HGA); the relationship of these tumors to undifferentiated adenocarcinoma (UND) has not yet been fully elucidated. This study of Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) program data compared the histotypes.
Methods: Registered as having been diagnosed between 1988 and 2003 were 2,246 SRC, 32,999 HGA, and 920 UND.