A fatal complication of colonoscopy due to a stenotic colon cancer: an alert to colleagues

Abstract

Colonoscopy is the most commonly performed method for Colon Cancer diagnosis and screening. And a successful exam requires bowel preparation. One of the main contraindications of the use of bowel cleansing agents is intestinal mechanical obstruction. But in many scenarios, as in public health services, there is a delay between the medical exam request and the data of the procedure. In some countries, this delay could be of many months. This interval is enough for nonobstructive colon cancer to turn into an obstructive lesion. The intake of bowel cleansing agents in an impending obstructive bowel syndrome could be a catastrophe. This is illustrated by this case report.