Patient: Female, 53-year-old
Final Diagnosis: Schistosomiasis colitis
Symptoms: Intolerable anal pain • rectal bleeding
Medication: —
Clinical Procedure: —
Specialty: Oncology • Surgery
Objective:
Rare co-existance of disease or pathology
Background:
Colorectal cancer is one of the most common cancers in men and women worldwide. There are several studies showing an association between chronic schistosomiasis infection and colorectal cancer.
Case Report:
A 53-year-old woman presented with recurrent metastatic colon cancer involving the peritoneum and bilateral adnexa. The patient then underwent exploratory laparotomy that involved abdominal wall deposit resection, omentectomy, redo left hemicolectomy, peritonectomy, diaphragmatic stripping, and total abdominal hysterectomy with bilateral salpingectomy-oophorectomy, as well as hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy (HIPEC). She also underwent adjuvant chemotherapy, but on her 6
th
cycle, the patient suffered intolerable anal pain, diarrhea, and rectal bleeding. Her colonoscopy showed extended circumferential inflammation with loses of vascular pattern and a few rectal ulcers going up to the anastomosis site. Biopsy revealed
Schistosoma mansoni
eggs and marked ischemic changes. She was then managed with a single dose of Praziquantel.
Conclusions:
Colorectal schistosomiasis infection is a rare cause of such common presentations especially in postoperative settings in a patient with recurrent metastatic colon cancer. The use of multimodality investigations and high clinical suspicion were needed for the diagnosis and to exclude other common etiologies.
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