No abstract

Ornithine transcarbamylase (OTC) is a mitochondrial-matrix enzyme that catalyzes conversion of ornithine and carbamyl phosphate to citrulline, the second step in the urea cycle. The urea cycle is the most important pathway to detoxification of ammonia in human beings. Ornithine transcarbamylase deficiency (OTCD) is the most common urea cycle disorder, inherited as an X-linked disorder that can cause fatal hyperammonemia in male newborns. Women with OTCD have a variable expression of their disease, the variability being determined by lyonization (random inactivation) of the X chromosome. We report a case of a 28-year-old woman who presented with hyperammonemic encephalopathy that was precipitated by a gastrointestinal bleed unmasking OTCD.

There is a subnormal rise of erythropoietin after interferon-ribavirin combination therapy for hepatitis C.

Recipients of renal transplants are known to have an increased incidence of cancer, which is believed to be related to the use of immunosuppressive drugs used to prevent rejection. Although the risks of lymphoma and Kaposi's sarcoma are clearly increased in this setting, the association with colon cancer is controversial. We report a 44-yr-old woman, 20 yr post-renal transplant, and with no family history of colorectal cancer or polyps, who was found to have synchronous, poorly differentiated colon cancers associated with extensive abdominal lymph node, bone marrow, and bone (skull) metastasis. The long term immunosuppressive drugs that she had received may have been an important factor in her tumor development and/or progression. Our case and literature review suggest a possible mild, increased risk of colon cancer development in patients after renal transplantation.

Recipients of renal transplants are known to have an increased incidence of cancer, which is believed to be related to the use of immunosuppressive drugs used to prevent rejection. Although the risks of lymphoma and Kaposi's sarcoma are clearly increased in this setting, the association with colon cancer is controversial. We report a 44-yr-old woman, 20 yr post-renal transplant, and with no family history of colorectal cancer or polyps, who was found to have synchronous, poorly differentiated colon cancers associated with extensive abdominal lymph node, bone marrow, and bone (skull) metastasis. The long term immunosuppressive drugs that she had received may have been an important factor in her tumor development and/or progression. Our case and literature review suggest a possible mild, increased risk of colon cancer development in patients after renal transplantation.