Cystic lymphangioma is a benign tumor of uncertain etiology characterized by a slow growth; in 2-8% of cases it is localized in the mesentery. Symptomatology is aspecific and preoperative diagnosis is often difficult. The Authors report the case of a mesenteric cystic lymphangioma in a patient who had undergone subtotal colectomy eight years earlier for an adenocarcinoma occluding the sigmoid colon. The patient was hospitalized for intestinal occlusion.