A 60-year-old woman is diagnosed with carcinoma of the sigmoid colon. Along which vessel do the lymphatics from the sigmoid colon primarily travel to reach the draining lymph nodes?

• A Superior mesenteric artery
• B Inferior mesenteric artery ✓
• C Middle colic artery
• D Internal iliac artery

Explanation

The sigmoid colon develops from the hindgut and its lymphatic drainage follows the inferior mesenteric artery to the inferior mesenteric lymph nodes. The superior mesenteric artery (A) drains midgut structures (jejunum, ileum, cecum, ascending colon, proximal transverse colon). The middle colic artery (C) is a branch of the superior mesenteric artery. The internal iliac artery (D) drains pelvic viscera, not the sigmoid colon.

Reference: Gray's Anatomy, 42nd ed.

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Written and medically reviewed by the StethoPrep medical team.