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Case Reports
. 2022 Mar 4;14(3):e22855.
doi: 10.7759/cureus.22855. eCollection 2022 Mar.

Capecitabine-Induced Enterocolitis

Muzammil Khan  1 , Robert Kleyner  2 , Sadia Abbasi  1 , Asim Haider  3
Affiliations
Case Reports

Capecitabine-Induced Enterocolitis

Muzammil Khan et al. Cureus. .

Abstract

Capecitabine is an oral fluoropyrimidine carbamate chemotherapy agent approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the treatment of metastatic colorectal and breast cancer. The common side effects associated with it include gastrointestinal (GI) upset, abdominal pain, palmar-plantar erythrodysesthesia, fatigue, alopecia, leukopenia, neutropenia, thrombocytopenia, anemia, and hyperbilirubinemia. Although GI symptoms are relatively common, enterocolitis is one of the rare side effects of this drug. We present a case of 53-year-old female who developed severe enterocolitis leading to ileus secondary to capecitabine chemotherapy for metastatic breast cancer. She was treated successfully via conservative management.

Keywords: capecitabine; chemotherapy-related toxicity; diarrhea; enterocolitis; ileus.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1. Computed tomography (CT) scan of the abdomen showing dilated intestinal loops (white arrow)
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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