title: Abdominal actinomycosis masquerading as colon cancer in a liver transplant recipient.
abstract: Infections in transplant recipients are associated with high morbidity and mortality, making their early recognition and treatment particularly important. Abdominal actinomycosis is a rare clinical entity and difficult to diagnose because of its various and nonspecific features. We describe a 57-year-old patient who presented with abdominal actinomycosis simulating colon cancer 6 years after liver transplantation. The main symptom was abdominal pain. Abdominal computed tomography and colonoscopy revealed an intraluminal 4.5 cm mass in the right colon, raising suspicions of a colonic malignancy and leading to surgical intervention. The postoperative pathologic study showed sulfur granules in the resected specimen compatible with abdominal actinomycosis. No signs of recurrence were seen throughout the 6-month follow-up. The literature on actinomycosis infections in immune-compromised hosts is reviewed. This presentation of actinomycosis in a liver transplant recipient has not been described previously, to our knowledge.
authors.affiliation: Department of  Internal Medicine A, Beilinson Hospital, Petah Tiqwa, Israel.
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Laish
authors.forename: O
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Benjaminov
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Morgenstern
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Greif
authors.forename: Z
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Ben-Ari
mesh_terms: D000005:Abdomen / Q000473:pathology* / Q000601:surgery; D015746:Abdominal Pain; D000196:Actinomycosis / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000601:surgery; D003110:Colonic Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000601:surgery; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D006801:Humans; D016031:Liver Transplantation / Q000009:adverse effects*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011860:Radiography, Abdominal; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed