Amoebiasis is a common parasitic infection with a global disease burden, and usually presents with intestinal disease. Cervical and vulvovaginal amoebiasis are rare extraintestinal manifestations that closely mimic malignancy, owing to overlapping symptoms like vaginal bleeding or discharge and ulcerated necrotic mass-like lesions on clinical examination. A high index of suspicion, particularly in women from endemic regions, combined with timely pathologic examination, is crucial for accurate diagnosis and appropriate management. Definitive diagnosis relies on cytologic or histopathological examination of cervical tissue demonstrating trophozoites of Entamoeba histolytica, often identifiable by their characteristic ingestion of erythrocytes. Herein, we report an account of three female patients with lower genital amoebiasis masquerading clinico-radiologically as malignancy. Prompt treatment with metronidazole resulted in complete clinical resolution in all 3 patients, highlighting the importance of considering amoebiasis in the differential diagnosis of atypical cervical or vulvovaginal lesions.
Bakshi et al. (Wed,) studied this question.