Case 43-1985: A 70-Year-Old Man with Diarrhea, Weight Loss, and Recurrent Atrial Fibrillation

Presentation of Case A 70-year-old man was admitted to the hospital because of chronic diarrhea and weight loss. He was in a stable state of health until three months earlier, when abdominal discomfort and bloating developed, followed by the passage of watery stools. On the following day he went to another hospital, where atrial fibrillation was found and he was admitted. The patient was a retired mechanic for a commercial airline. He had smoked cigarettes in the past but had discontinued smoking 15 years earlier. A transurethral resection of the prostate gland was performed four years before admission, and urethral.