Candidaemia and cancer: patients are not all the same.
BACKGROUND
Most of the studies about invasive Candida infections in cancer patients have focused on haematological patients. The aim of this study was to provide information about risk factors for candidaemia in patients with solid tumours.


METHODS
Retrospective cohort study. During a 9-year period (1995-2003) we reviewed all cases of candidaemia that affected cancer patients in Santa Casa Complexo Hospitalar, Brazil.


RESULTS
During the period of study, 210 patients had the diagnosis of candidaemia in our medical centre, and 83 of these patients had cancer (39.5%). The majority of patients with cancer had solid tumours (77.1%), mostly in the alimentary tract. Most of solid cancers were non-metastatic (71.9%). Major diagnoses in patients with haematological neoplasia were acute leukaemia (n = 13), high grade non-Hodgkin lymphoma (n = 5) and Hodgkin's disease (n = 1). Non-Candida albicans species caused 57.8% of the episodes of candidaemia in patients with cancer, mainly in patients with haematological malignancies (p = 0.034). Neutropenia and treatment with corticosteroids were more frequent in the haematological group, in comparison with patients with solid tumours. Only 22.2% of patients with solid tumours were neutropenic before candidaemia. Nonetheless, the presence of ileus and the use of anaerobicides were independent risk factors for candidaemia in patients with solid cancers. The overall mortality in cancer patients with candidaemia was 49.4%. We then compared 2 groups of adult patients with candidaemia. The first was composed of non-neutropenic patients with solid tumours, and the second group included patients without cancer. We found that central venous catheters and gastrointestinal surgery were independently associated with candidaemia in patients with solid tumour.


CONCLUSIONS
Cancer patients with candidaemia seem to have very different predisposing factors to acquire the infection when stratified according to baseline diseases. This study provides some useful clinical information regarding risk for candidaemia in patients with solid tumours.
Medical School, The University of Manchester, UK. alessandro.pasqualotto@manchester.ac.uk
Alessandro Comarú
AC
Pasqualotto
Daniela Dornelles
DD
Rosa
Lidia Rosi
LR
Medeiros
Luiz Carlos
LC
Severo
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000935:Antifungal Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D002177:Candidiasis / Q000150:complications* / Q000188:drug therapy; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D015331:Cohort Studies; D005260:Female; D016469:Fungemia / Q000150:complications* / Q000188:drug therapy; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000150:complications*; D016017:Odds Ratio; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors
D000935:Antifungal Agents