Malignant teratoma of the left colon associated with chronic ulcerative colitis

An autopsy case of a malignant teratoma of the descending colon is presented, the first observed in this site. A 41-year-old woman had suffered from chronic ulcerative colitis and was operated because of an abscess forming a mass in the left colon. However, the tumour proved to be inoperable and the patient died from septicaemia. Histologically, the tumour was a highly metastasizing malignant teratoma containing mature tissue elements (hair, cartilage, adipose tissue, squamous epithelium, bronchial, endometrial and cervical tissues). The relationship between the ulcerative colitis and the teratoma is obscure.