Identical twins discordant for ulcerative colitis with colon cancer.
A 22-year-old patient with a 16-year history of ulcerative colitis who developed multifocal anaplastic colon cancer is presented. His identical twin, proven by blood type, HL-A, and fingerprint analyses, has been completely asymptomatic. This report suggests that ulcerative colitis results from a polygenic predisposition without full penetrance. Subsequent development of colon cancer seems more likely related to the inflammatory disease that an independent genetic determinant.
D000328:Adult; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003110:Colonic Neoplasms / Q000150:complications* / Q000235:genetics; D004200:Diseases in Twins; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male