Hormonal therapy in chronic radiation colitis

Severe gastrointestinal bleeding is a rare complication of radiation therap y that requires frequent transfusions. This case report describes a patient with severe bleeding from radiation colitis after treatment of bladder can cer. During 5 months of therapy with multiple drugs, the patient needed 26 units of packed red cells, A subsequent hormone therapy consisting of an es trogen-progesterone combination significantly reduced the need for blood tr ansfusions and hospitalization. We conclude that hormones might provide a p romising new additional symptomatic therapy for bleeding radiogenic colitis , (C) 1998 by Am. Cell. of Gastroenterology.