[Tuberculosis and cancer. Experience of a general hospital].

Tuberculosis and cancer are two processes in relationship. The relation between both are studied. We analyzed retrospectively the culture-positive tuberculosis cases in from 1999 to 2002. We described the six cases with tuberculosis and cancer. One hundred and five cases of tuberculosis were observed, 6 cases (5.7%) had cancer. Four cases were pulmonary tuberculosis, one tuberculous pleurisy and other urinary tuberculosis urinary. The two cases with bronchogenic neoplasm had a diagnosis of tuberculosis at same time than cancer. The diagnosis of neoplasm was previous than tuberculosis in two cases (breast neoplasm and hypernephroma), and posterior in others two cases (breast and colon neoplasm). Half of theses patients died. In patients with neoplasm, the possibility of coexist tuberculosis is not depreciable, previous, concomitant or after the diagnosis of neoplasm.