Rg. Norfleet et Pd. Mitchell, STREPTOCOCCUS-BOVIS DOES NOT SELECTIVELY COLONIZE COLORECTAL-CANCER AND POLYPS, Journal of clinical gastroenterology, 17(1), 1993, pp. 25-28
The objective was to determine if Streptococcus bovis selectively colo
nizes colorectal cancer and polyps. Stools were submitted before colon
oscopy; fluid and selected tissue biopsies obtained during colonoscopy
were cultured for S. bovis. The setting was a large multispecialty cl
inic. Outpatients undergoing colonoscopy for suspected colorectal canc
er and polyps were the participants. Forty studies on 35 patients were
performed. One of 35 stools (2.9%) obtained before colonoscopy yielde
d S. bovis. S. bovis was cultured from three of 40 fluid aspirations (
7.5%), one of 33 adenomas biopsied (3%), none of six adenocarcinomas,
none of 14 nonneoplastic polyps, one of 40 (2.5%) biopsies from normal
mucosa adjacent to an adenoma, and none of 40 mucosal biopsies remote
from any lesion. These data do not support selective colonization of
colorectal neoplasms by S. bovis.