Carcinoma of the anal canal.

J.W. is a 68-year-old white female who noted an "anal growth" 1 year prior to admission. She also complained of bleeding from her rectum when she was constipated. She attributed these symptoms to hemorrhoids. She noted increasing pain and more bleeding 1 month prior to admission. Locally applied hemorrhoid remedies gave her no relief. She was then admitted to a hospital where a biopsy of the anal mass was performed, and then referred to Rush-Presbyterian-St. Luke's Medical Center. On physical examination the patient was noted to be obese. There was no inguinal lymphadenopathy. There were no abdominal masses or hepatosplenomegaly. Rectal examination revealed a 3 X 4 cm mass protruding from the anus. Examination and protoscopy done under anesthesia revealed this mass to be approximately 4 X 5 cm and arising from the proximal anal canal. The mass was freely moveable and bled spontaneously when manipulated. Pelvic examination revealed a normal uterus and adnexa with no obvious tumor involvement of the vagina. Proctoscopic examination revealed no tumor proximal to the lesion described. Further evaluation included a liver-spleen scan that was negative for metastatic disease and intravenous pyelogram that showed no lesions. A barium enema revealed only diverticula. A gallium scan showed marked uptake at the area of the anal tumor but no other lesions. The chest x-ray was within normal limits. A CT scan of the abdomen and pelvis revealed no masses or lymphadenopathy. The CEA was 1.3 ng/ml. The patient underwent concomitant radiation therapy and chemotherapy. Over a 4-week period the patient received 5000 rads to the anal region. In addition, during the first week of radiation therapy and the fourth week of radiation therapy, the patient received 5-fluorouracil, 800 mg/m2 by continuous infusion for 5 days. In addition, the patient received mitomycin C, 15 mg/m2 on the first day of the first week of chemotherapy and the first day of the last week of chemotherapy. During the treatment period, the patient had mild diarrhea, perineal desquamation, and mild ulceration at the site of the anal tumor. During the third week of treatment, the patient had a white blood cell count nadir of 2800 and a platelet count of 86,000 per cubic millimeter. Her symptoms were managed with local emolients and antidiarrheal medications.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)