Cancer in Ulcerative Colitis: Good News and Bad News

Excerpt

Most investigators agree on two points concerning cancer in ulcerative colitis. First, the risk of colorectal cancer seems to be higher in ulcerative colitis patients than in the general population. Second, the diagnosis of colorectal cancer in ulcerative colitis is too often delayed until the tumor is far advanced and incurable; early detection or prevention would be preferable. Beyond these two predictable areas of agreement, however, however, consensus rapidly breaks down.

The issues that remain in dispute fall into four broad categories: measuring the "true" incidence of cancer in ulcerative colitis; identifying those factors that influence the risk of cancer