Nguyen-Ngo K, Majmudar VH, Jain A, Manem N, Donovan K, Tadros M. Streptococcus bovis endocarditis secondary to colorectal cancer: A case report. World J Clin Cases 2026; 14(3): 117276 [DOI: 10.12998/wjcc.v14.i3.117276]
Corresponding Author of This Article
Micheal Tadros, Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Albany Medical Center, 43 New Scotland Ave, Albany, NY 12208, United States. tadrosm1@amc.edu
Research Domain of This Article
Gastroenterology & Hepatology
Article-Type of This Article
Case Report
Open-Access Policy of This Article
This article is an open-access article which was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Jan 26, 2026 (publication date) through Jan 23, 2026
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Journal Information of This Article
Publication Name
World Journal of Clinical Cases
ISSN
2307-8960
Publisher of This Article
Baishideng Publishing Group Inc, 7041 Koll Center Parkway, Suite 160, Pleasanton, CA 94566, USA
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Nguyen-Ngo K, Majmudar VH, Jain A, Manem N, Donovan K, Tadros M. Streptococcus bovis endocarditis secondary to colorectal cancer: A case report. World J Clin Cases 2026; 14(3): 117276 [DOI: 10.12998/wjcc.v14.i3.117276]
Kyle Nguyen-Ngo, Vinit H Majmudar, Aryan Jain, Nihita Manem, Katherine Donovan, Department of Gastroenterology, Albany Medical College, Albany, NY 12208, United States
Micheal Tadros, Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Albany Medical Center, Albany, NY 12208, United States
Author contributions: Nguyen-Ngo K conceptualized the research study, wrote the manuscript, validated methodology, and formally analyzed patient data; Majmudar VH wrote the manuscript and formally analyzed patient data; Jain A, Manem N, Donovan K collected patient data; Tadros M conceptualized and supervised the research study.
Informed consent statement: Written informed consent was obtained from the patient for the publication of this case report and all associated images.
Conflict-of-interest statement: All authors declare that they have no conflict of interest to disclose.
CARE Checklist (2016) statement: The authors have read the CARE Checklist (2016), and the manuscript was prepared and revised according to the CARE Checklist (2016).
Open Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Micheal Tadros, Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Albany Medical Center, 43 New Scotland Ave, Albany, NY 12208, United States. tadrosm1@amc.edu
Received: December 3, 2025 Revised: December 24, 2025 Accepted: January 14, 2026 Published online: January 26, 2026 Processing time: 50 Days and 8.7 Hours
Abstract
BACKGROUND
Streptococcus bovis (S. bovis) bacteremia and infective endocarditis have a well-established association with colorectal cancer (CRC), though the mechanisms underlying this potentially bidirectional relationship remain poorly understood.
CASE SUMMARY
This case report describes a 55-year-old male with a history of hypertension and hemicolectomy due to advanced colorectal adenomas who presented with syncope, septic shock, and a 12-pound weight loss over 3 weeks. Subsequent blood cultures grew S. bovis, with a transthoracic echocardiogram revealed mobile vegetations on both the aortic and mitral valves. A sessile, non-obstructing cecal adenocarcinoma was also observed on colonoscopy. The patient was started on 6 weeks of intravenous ceftriaxone, followed by surgical repair of both heart valves and a laparoscopic right hemicolectomy.
CONCLUSION
This presentation underscores how CRC-induced mucosal disruption may predispose to bacterial translocation, resulting in systemic infection and endocarditis.
Core Tip: This case report illustrates the well-recognized but still poorly understood link between Streptococcus bovis (S. bovis) infection and colorectal cancer (CRC). By detailing a patient who developed S. bovis bacteremia and dual-valve endocarditis in the setting of a small, localized cecal adenocarcinoma, the case provides insight into how early mucosal disruption from CRC may facilitate bacterial translocation and systemic infection. The report underscores the necessity of prompt colorectal evaluation in all patients with S. bovis bacteremia-even without gastrointestinal symptoms-and highlights the potential role of S. bovis both as a biomarker and a participant in CRC pathogenesis.
