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Gastroenterology Coding Alert

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Don't Forget Additional Codes When Reporting Lynch Syndrome Diagnosis

Published on Tue May 06, 2014

Question: I am looking for the diagnosis code for ‘Lynch Syndrome”, also known as ‘Hereditary nonpolyposis colorectal cancer’. I have looked this up in every possible way I can think of and can’t come up with the code. What is this condition, and what should I report?

Nevada Subscriber

Answer: Lynch Syndrome, also called hereditary nonpolyposis colorectal cancer (HNPCC), is an inherited condition that increases a patient’s chance of getting colon cancer as well as several other cancers.
Your final coding will depend on the exact nature of the patient’s condition.The simple answer is when reporting a diagnosis of Lynch Syndrome you should report V84.09 (Genetic susceptibility to other malignant neoplasm). 
 
You may need additional codes to complete the coding. For instance, if the patient currently has a malignant neoplasm, you should code that neoplasm first, such as 153.6 (Malignant neoplasm of ascending colon). If the patient has a history of a malignant neoplasm, you should report a code to indicate this, such as V10.05 (Personal history of malignant neoplasm of large intestine). Given the nature of the condition, perhaps the patient has a family history of cancer documented. If so, you should report this, as well, using the appropriate code, such as V16.0 (Family history of malignant neoplasm of gastrointestinal tract).
 
ICD-10-CM: Under ICD-10-CM, the codes above would crosswalk to:
  • C18.2, Malignant neoplasm of ascending colon
  • Z15.09, Genetic susceptibility to other malignant neoplasm
  • Z85.038, Personal history of other malignant neoplasm of large intestine
  • Z80.0, Family history of malignant neoplasm of digestive organs. 

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