Chemotherapy Treatment for Ulcerative Colitis

Ulcerative colitis is a painful condition of the digestive tract that can also cause symptoms like diarrhea and constipation. Some patients have found relief through chemotherapy treatment.

Methotrexate

• The health and wellness website LifeExtension.org reports that methotrexate, commonly used as a chemotherapy treatment for cancer patients, has been effective in treating patients with moderate to severe ulcerative colitis.

Mercaptopurine

• Although mercaptopurine is often used as a chemotherapy drug, it may interfere with some medications used in treating ulcerative colitis.

When Chemotherapy Is Prescribed

• Chemotherapy is used in patients with ulcerative colitis who have not responded to treatment with corticosteroids.

Additional Benefit

• According to TheDoctorWillSeeYouNow.com, using chemotherapy to treat ulcerative colitis can benefit patients by preventing possible dependence on the standard steroid treatments that use corticosteroids on a long-term basis.

Chemoprevention

• According to News-Medical.net, a 2005 study from the University of Michigan Health System showed that chemotherapy, or "chemoprevention," is effective in preventing ulcerative colitis-associated colon cancer.