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Query: UMLS:C0023418 (leukemia)
 93,477 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

The results of a retrospective autopsy study of 115 adult patients with haematological or lymphoreticular malignancies or who had undergone transplantation procedures, are presented. The overall incidence of infection was 65%, 123 infections being detected in 75 patients. The bulk of the infections involved the gastro-intestinal and respiratory systems, other systems being considerably less frequently affected. Patients who had received allografts and subsequent immunosuppression had the highest incidence of viral inclusions, especially cytomegalovirus. Candida infections were more common than aspergillosis, and severe fungal infections were most frequent in patients with acute leukaemia who had been treated aggressively. The only other mycosis detected was cryptococcosis. Bacterial pneumonia was the most frequent infection over-all (36%). Tuberculosis, pyelonephritis and Pneumocystis pneumonitis were also encountered.
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PMID:The incidence of infections in compromised patients at Groote Schuur hospital. An autopsy study. 34 75

During a 14 month period there were 364 episodes of bacteremia and fungemia at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. The first nine months of the study were retrospective, and the next five prospective. In patients with leukemia or lymphoma (group 1), Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Klebsiella pneumoniae and Staphylococcus aureus were the most frequently isolated organisms. The mortality in this group was 40.5 per cent. In the patients with solid tumor (group 2), Esch. coli, Staph. aureus, Bacteroides sp. and Candida sp. were most frequent. Mortality was 27.8 per cent. The source of infection in both groups was often indeterminate. High mortality was associated with pulmonary and intraabdominal infection and with Ps. aeruginosa, K. pneumoniae or polymicrobic sepsis. Factors of prognostic significance were the causative microorganism, source of infection and shock. Although mortality was higher in patients with leukopenia than in those with normal leukocyte counts, the differences were not significant. The mortality in this series was low considering the severity of the underlying diseases and the immunosuppressed state of many of the patients. In a prospective, randomly controlled study, mortality was further diminished by infectious disease consultation at the time the positive blood culture was reported. Severe fungal superinfection, predominantly aspergillosis and candidiasis, was found in 52 per cent of the autopsy patients with leukemia or lymphoma (group 1), but in only 8 per cent of those with solid tumors (group 2).
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PMID:Bacteremia and fungemia complicating neoplastic disease. A study of 364 cases. 87 Nov 28

Thirty-six consecutive patients with cancer who met the classical criteria for fever of unexplained origin (FUO) were identified. A total of 18 patients had infections including all 12 with leukemia, four of 12 with Hodgkin's disease, and two with solid tumors. Fungal infections were found in nine: histoplasmosis, three; candidiasis, three; and aspergillosis, systemic sporotrichosis, or cryptococcal meningitis, one each. Six patients had unresolved pyogenic infections and one had tuberculous pericarditis. Two others had viral etiologies. Granulocytopenia was significantly more common in the FUO patients with documented infections. Clinical or laboratory abnormalities suggesting involvement of a specific organ or organ system provided important clues indicating infections. Morphological examination of biopsy specimens, with cultures, was the best method for diagnosis. In 18 patients, 12 with lymphomas and 6 with solid tumors, only the neoplasm appeared responsible for the fever. In these patients there was a paucity of abnormalities indicating organ system involvement with infection. Regardless, physicians' diagnostic efforts should not be deterred in such patients. Repeated thorough evaluations for infection are warranted.
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PMID:Infections or neoplasm as causes of prolonged fever in cancer patients. 106 64

Systemic Candida infections are a major cause of infectious morbidity and mortality during chemotherapy-induced neutropenia. Because of the unreliability of conventional diagnostic tests to detect systemic infection early in its course, treatment of established disseminated Candida infection has been generally disappointing with mortality rates of 60-80% in leukemia and bone marrow transplant patients and 30-40% in solid tumor patients. The use of empiric amphotericin B in patients with fever not responding to empiric antibacterial agents has been shown to be successful in reducing morbidity and mortality from fungal infections. However, its toxicity has mitigated the success of this approach. Fluconazole given prophylactically at the institution of chemotherapy has been shown to be a safe and effective alternative. It, however, is not active against all fungal species, especially Aspergillus and some of the less virulent Candida species. Some centers have reported break-through infections by these less susceptible organisms. Whether or not these limitations in its spectrum of activity will limit its usefulness in the future remains unanswered at this time and could pose a cloud to an otherwise bright promise.
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PMID:The use of fluconazole prophylaxis in patients with chemotherapy-induced neutropenia. 129 Sep 59

We report on two patients with acute leukemia and prolonged granulocytopenia after cytotoxic therapy in whom the diagnosis hepatosplenic candidiasis was made. Both patients developed upper abdominal discomfort with elevated alkaline phosphatase after resolution of granulocytopenia. The diagnosis was established by demonstration of multiple abscesses in liver and spleen on ultrasound and computed tomography. Both patients were initially treated with amphotericin B i.v., one of them received liposomal amphotericin B (cumulative dose of 2,530 mg and 570 mg, respectively). Thereafter, therapy was continued for months with oral fluconazole. The treatment of hepatosplenic candidiasis was successful, however, the patients died from relapse and progression of leukemia.
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PMID:Hepatosplenic candidiasis, a fatal disease? 129 53

We determined whether ketoconazole prophylaxis might reduce Candida colonization and infections in adult patients with acute leukaemia. During first-remission induction therapy 50 patients were treated with 200 mg ketoconazole administered orally daily, while 57 patients received placebo in a double-blind, randomized trial. The duration of severe neutropenia (granulocytes less than 0.1 x 10(9) l-1) represented 36% of the study period in the ketoconazole group and 26% in the placebo group (P = 0.043). Although fewer patients presented with positive Candida surveillance cultures and serological evidence of Candida infection in the ketoconazole group compared to the placebo group, two candidaemias and one Trichosporum fungaemia were observed in the ketoconazole group. Moreover, significantly more bacteraemias were noted in the ketoconazole group (n = 37) than in the placebo group (n = 21) (P = 0.004). Thus, although oral ketoconazole prophylaxis might be associated with less Candida colonization and fewer seroconversions, it also resulted in more bacteraemias and longer duration of severe neutropenia, suggesting that caution should be exercised when ketoconazole (or related drugs) is given to this group of immunocompromised hosts.
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PMID:Oral ketoconazole prophylaxis for Candida infections during induction therapy for acute leukaemia in adults: more bacteraemias. 158 60

Cerebral fungal infection is becoming an increasingly recognized entity in immunocompromised patients on post-mortem examination. In order to determine the frequency of clinically significant cerebral fungal infection and define its clinical characteristics in a cohort of immunocompromised patients at high risk of fungal infection, the records of 118 patients with acute leukemia were examined for 57 clinical and laboratory features. The characteristics of 26 patients with systemic aspergillosis and acute leukemia were compared to 92 patients with acute leukemia in a control group. Eight of 118 patients (7%) had cerebral infection (seven Aspergillus, on Candida). Patients with systemic aspergillosis were more likely than patients in the control group to have focal neurologic findings (p = 0.02), confusion (p = 0.04), and abnormal computerized tomography (CT) of the brain characterized by single or multiple, enhancing or non-enhancing hypodense lesions (p = 0.02). Patients with systemic aspergillosis were more likely to die in complete remission than patients in the control group (p = 0.003); three of six patients with aspergillosis who died in remission expired as a consequence of cerebral infection. Cerebral infection complicated systemic Aspergillus infection in seven of 26 patients (27%), versus one of 16 patients with systemic Candida infection (6%) (p = NS). The authors conclude, therefore, that systemic aspergillosis complicating acute leukemia is more likely to be associated with confusion, focal neurologic findings, and abnormal CT scan of the brain, and that these findings suggest the presence of cerebral infection. In addition, cerebral infection commonly complicates the course of systemic aspergillosis, and is a significant cause of morbidity and mortality in patients with acute leukemia. A high index of suspicion is needed to insure early diagnosis and appropriate therapy, particularly in those who achieve remission of their leukemia.
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PMID:Cerebral infection complicating systemic aspergillosis in acute leukemia: clinical and radiographic presentation. 161 41

1053 autopsies were performed during the period from 1976 to 1990 in patients with leukaemia and malignant lymphomas. At autopsy 184 of these (17.4%) presented with deep-seated mycoses. There was an increasing percentage of mycoses per year with a maximum of 30% in 1990. Today deep-seated mycoses are the most frequent lethal complication in haematologic neoplasias. As expected their number was especially high in patients with acute leukaemia but in recent years they were nearly just as frequent in myeloproliferative disorders. Among Non-Hodgkin lymphomas (NHL) they were twice as frequent in low-grade cases as in high-grade cases possibly due to a different extent of bone marrow infiltration. In contrast to former years more aspergillosis than Candida infections are found, probably as a result of antimycotic therapy.
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PMID:[Autopsy results of deep mycoses in hematologic neoplasms (1053 patients]. 181 57

The case of a granulocytopenic patient with acute undifferentiated leukaemia and hepatosplenic candidiasis who was refractory to conventional deoxycholate amphotericin B (AmpB) and 5-flucytosine therapy is reported. He experienced severe AmpB-related side-effects, and was subsequently successfully treated with a pharmaceutical preparation of AmpB (5.7 g) entrapped in sonicated liposomes, composed of lecithin, cholesterol and stearylamine in a molar ratio of 4:3:1. Three months later, during maintenance chemotherapy, liposomal AmpB (5.1 g) was reinstituted due to the finding of biopsies positive for Candida albicans at bronchoscopy. After healing of the patient's fungal infection a left upper lobe resection was performed, which showed advanced fibrosis with signs of inflammation, but no evidence of fungal disease. Since no acute side-effects and only moderate hypokalaemia were observed, it appears that liposomal AmpB is superior to conventional AmpB treatment in granulocytopenic patients with hepatosplenic candidiasis and unbearable therapy-related side-effects.
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PMID:Successful treatment of hepatosplenic candidiasis with a liposomal amphotericin B preparation. 186 69

A fatal case of leukemia complicated by mixed invasive aspergillosis and candidiasis is presented. Mixed fungal infections may occur in any immunocompromised patients. We should be careful to look for different morphologies of fungi in diagnostic examinations of lesions in these patients.
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PMID:Mixed invasive aspergillosis and candidiasis in a fatal case of leukemia. 195 44


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