Cecal tuberculosis mimicking submucosal tumor

Abstract

A 41-year-old man presented with abdominal fullness in late August 2012. Abdominal CT showed ileus caused by stenosis of the ileum and an enlargement of the ileocecal lymph nodes. Colonoscopy showed a steep elevated protruding tumor in the cecum, with multiple ulcerative lesions on top. A pathological analysis of the lesions confirmed chronic inflammatory infiltration and epithelioid granuloma. The findings of a tuberculin skin test and QuantiFERON-TB-Gold test were positive. As a result, we treated the patient for tuberculosis of the cecum. After 4 months of treatment, colonoscopy confirmed the disappearance of the tumor. In conclusion, intestinal tuberculosis should be considered in the differential diagnosis when protruding lesions appear in the cecum.