Is History of Cancer Associated with Microscopic Colitis?

Patients with microscopic colitis (which consists of collagenous colitis and lymphocytic colitis) present with chronic watery diarrhea; the disease is associated with female sex, older age, and presence of autoimmune disorders, including celiac disease and thyroid disease. However, the incidence of microscopic colitis, as well as any other risk factors, has not been well defined.

To address this issue, researchers used a pathology department database from a single center in Alberta, Canada, to identify new histopathologic cases of microscopic colitis that were diagnosed from 2002 to 2004.

The investigators discovered 164 cases of microscopic colitis, which represented an annual incidence rate of 10 per 100,000 person-years. (The incidence rat…