Genital tuberculosis can present as disseminated ovarian carcinoma with ascites and raised Ca-125: a case report

Fatal Pulmonary Embolism in the Setting of Immune Reconstitution Inflammatory Syndrome Attributed to Ovarian Tuberculosis

In developed countries, tuberculosis remains a health care challenge due to human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and immigration from endemic regions. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported 9557 new cases in 2015, with extrapulmonary involvement in 20.2% of the cases. We present a 33-year-old woman from Cape Town, South Africa, who developed abdominal pain and fever while working on a cruise ship. She sought medical where she underwent computed tomography of her chest, abdomen, and pelvis with findings suggestive of pulmonary tuberculosis and an 8.9-cm pelvic mass. HIV testing was positive and the patient was started on antiretroviral therapy. Bronchoscopy confirmed the presence of acid-fast bacilli, and she was started on rifampin, isoniazid, pyrazinamide, and ethambutol. She remained persistently febrile, raising suspicion for immune reconstitution inflammatory syndrome. However, despite empiric antibiotics, the patient remained persistently febrile, tachycardic, and on day 10 of admission she went into ventricular fibrillation and expired. Autopsy revealed an occlusive thrombus in the left main pulmonary artery in addition to necrotizing granulomata in multiple organs and bilateral tubo-ovarian abscesses. Postmortem cultures for were positive for Mycobacterium tuberculosis, all consistent with disseminated Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Although previous reports underscore the association between tuberculosis and hypercoagulability, the exact mechanism remains unknown. In this article, we report a case of disseminated tuberculosis complicated by bilateral tubo-ovarian abscesses with fatal pulmonary thrombus formation.

Peritoneal carcinomatosis mimicking a peritoneal tuberculosis

Symptoms of a peritoneal progression from ovarian cancer are nonspecific such as abdominal pain, abdominal distention and more. Many imaging studies and serum CA-125 help diagnosis. However, it is difficult to exclude the instances of the diffuse peritoneal diseases that mimic carcinomatosis. The elevated CA-125 level usually correlates with the peritoneal carcimatosis, but it is often found in other peritoneal diseases. Therefore, the pathologic confirmation is necessary because of other mimicking diseases. In our case, CA-125 levels were elevated. Abdominal computed tomography finding was suspected a peritoneal tuberculosis but the pathologic result was the peritoneal carcimatosis, eventually.

Pelvic inflammatory disease: a retrospective clinical analysis of 1,922 cases in North China

PURPOSE

To identify the cause of pelvic inflammatory disease (PID) in Shanxi, North China.

METHODS

Retrospective analysis of 1,922 women with PID who underwent laparoscopy for infertility.

RESULTS

1,922 cases (42.3%) of PID were detected in 4,540 cases of infertility, wherein the incidence rates of nonspecific PID and female genital tuberculosis (FGTB) were 57.9 and 42.1%, respectively. From 1985 to 1995, FGTB (25.1%) was the first reason for infertility, while from 1996 to 2006, nonspecific PID (33.9%) emerged as the most common cause of infertility. Further, FGTB (74.7%) was the major factor causing occluded fallopian tubes, followed by nonspecific PID (61.1%), and the damage of the former was more serious than the latter.

CONCLUSIONS

PID is the main cause of tubal infertility, but the etiology of PID has changed from FGTB to nonspecific PID in the last 10 years in Shanxi.

Tuberculous peritonitis presenting as an acute abdomen: a case report

Female genital tuberculosis is relatively rare and difficult to diagnose. Often it is mistaken for ovarian malignancy. We report a case of a young immigrant woman with acute abdominal pain.

Tuberculosis and malignancy

BACKGROUND

Tuberculosis (TB) and malignancy represent global threats claiming millions of lives and inflicting formidable suffering worldwide. Surprisingly, the pathophysiological and practical implications of their co-existence have received little attention.

METHODS

Therefore, we sought to review the available literature on the field and identify data regarding the association between TB and malignancy in order to highlight the neglected aspects of this association and probably derive clinically useful information. We searched PubMed up to June 2008 for case reports, case series, non-comparative and comparative studies that were written in English and reported data on the occurrence of both TB infection and a neoplastic disorder in the same patient(s). The development of mycobacterial infections in patients with immunocompromized conditions is well known and was considered outside the scope of this review.

EVIDENCE SYNTHESIS

The synthesis of the available evidence enabled us to establish three different types of association between malignancy and TB: (i) the development of cancer on the background of a previous tuberculous infection; (ii) the concurrent existence of TB and malignancy in the same patient(s) or clinical specimen(s); and (iii) the diagnostic challenges arising from the multi-faceted presentations of these two disorders.

CONCLUSION

We conclude that clinicians need to be aware of the protean manifestations of TB and cancer and maintain a high index of suspicion for simultaneous and/or misleading presentations. In addition, further research is required to determine if a tuberculous infection, being similar to other chronic infections and inflammatory conditions, may facilitate carcinogenesis.

Genital tuberculosis in a tamoxifen-treated postmenopausal woman with breast cancer and bloody vaginal discharge

BACKGROUND

Female genital tuberculosis is an uncommon disease that is rarely diagnosed in developed countries.

CASE PRESENTATION

A 61-year-old postmenopausal woman who had undergone surgery and treated with adjuvant chemotherapy for infiltrating ductal carcinoma of the breast five years ago, presented with bloody vaginal discharge, fatigue, weight loss, and low grade fevers at night for two months. Histological examination of the endometrium, done based on the suspicion of a second primary cancer due to the tamoxifen therapy, revealed a granulomatous reaction. Liquid and solid mycobacterial cultures of the tissues were performed. Although the acid fast staining was negative, the liquid culture was positive for Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Involvement of other systems was not detected. The patient was treated with a three-drug antituberculosis regimen for 9 months and recovered fully.

CONCLUSION

Female genital tuberculosis is a rare but curable disease that should be included in the differential diagnosis of women with menstrual problems. Early diagnosis is important and may prevent unnecessary invasive procedures for the patient.

[Peritoneal tuberculosis simulating advanced ovarian carcinoma: a case report]

Disseminated peritoneal tuberculosis accounts for 1-3% of tuberculosis disease, represented by high frequency of lung defects in endemic countries. The authors report one case in a 43-year-old woman, the initial interpretation of which, based on pleural and peritoneal exudate, showed suspected latero-uterine mass and significant elevated serum CA 125 level, mimicking disseminated ovarian carcinoma. Only after exploring laparotomy with biopsy was disseminated peritoneal tuberculosis identified, thus correcting the diagnosis. Symptomatology, X-ray defect, and cynetic of serum CA 125 level were left in totality after 3 months of antituberculosis multidrugs. This is a diagnostic trap, which presents a new interest for such pathology as tuberculosis, which is on the increase again in the West.

Peritoneal tuberculosis--an uncommon disease that may deceive the gynecologist

OBJECTIVES

To document women with peritoneal tuberculosis mimicking ovarian malignancy and to review pertinent literature.

STUDY DESIGN

The records of women with peritoneal tuberculosis who were managed at the Soroka Medical Center, Beer-Sheva, Israel between January 2000 and December 2001 were reviewed.

RESULTS

Four patients with peritoneal tuberculosis mimicking ovarian malignancy were encountered. Two presented with the classical symptomatology of advanced-stage ovarian carcinoma including ascites, abdominopelvic masses and elevated serum CA-125, and two presented with lower abdominal pain and adnexal mass. Laparoscopy in one patient and laparotomy in three patients revealed peritoneal tuberculosis and no malignancy. Of the three patients who had laparotomy, two underwent unnecessary extended surgery including total hysterectomy, bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy, omentectomy and bilateral pelvic lymphadenectomy, and one had conservative surgery including unilateral salpingo-oophorectomy. All patients were postoperatively treated with quadruple anti-tuberculosis chemotherapy.

CONCLUSIONS

Medical awareness of peritoneal tuberculosis is still lacking and many women with this disease are initially thought to have ovarian malignancy and undergo unnecessary extended surgery. Laparoscopy including biopsies seems to be a sufficient and safe method to provide diagnosis of peritoneal tuberculosis. If laparoscopy is not feasible, laparotomy should be performed. If no malignancy is detected and the diagnosis of peritoneal tuberculosis is confirmed, unnecessary extended surgery is avoided and anti-tuberculosis treatment is started.

Cancer antigen 125 associated with multiple benign and malignant pathologies

BACKGROUND

Cancer antigen (CA) 125 tumor-associated antigen is a high molecular glycoprotein used for follow-up of epithelial ovarian cancer. The test is often requested as a differential diagnosis in patients with pleural or peritoneal fluid. This study analyzes the prevalence of CA-125 increases in a population of patients attending a general hospital and discusses the possible clinical implications of increased levels.

METHODS

On 4 different days, 380 CA-125 assays were performed in randomly selected patients attending our hospital. Serum CA-125 was measured with a commercial enzyme immunoassay, and clinical records were reviewed for assessment of clinical parameters.

RESULTS

Sixty-one patients (16%) had increased CA-125. The pathologies of these patients were heart failure in 9 (14.7%), lung disease 11 (18%), hepatic cirrhosis in 7 (11.4%), malignant tumors in 9 (14.7%), intra-abdominal nonhepatic disease in 6 (10%), previous surgery in 17 (27.8%), and miscellaneous in 2 (3%). Effusions were seen in 34 patients (55.7%).

CONCLUSIONS

Our data confirm the variety of benign and malignant pathologies coursing with increased CA-125. Cardiovascular and chronic liver disease were the most frequent diagnoses in patients with increased CA-125; this supports the opinion that CA-125 lacks utility as a marker for malignancy. CA-125 could have a role in the follow-up of cardiovascular, hepatic, and tumoral diseases with serosal involvement.