title: Safety and efficacy of a caspofungin-based combination therapy for treatment of proven or probable aspergillosis in pediatric hematological patients.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Fungal infections are diagnosed increasingly often in patients affected by hematological diseases and their mortality has remained high. The recent development of new antifungal drugs gives the clinician the possibility to assess the combination of antifungal drugs with in-vitro or in animal-model synergistic effect.
  
  
  METHODS
  We analyzed retrospectively the safety and efficacy of caspofungin-based combination therapy in 40 children and adolescents, most of them were being treated for a malignant disease, who developed invasive aspergillosis (IA) between November 2002 and November 2005.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Thirteen (32.5%) patients developed IA after hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT), 13 after primary diagnosis, usually during remission-induction chemotherapy, and 14 after relapse of disease. Severe neutropenia was present in 31 (78%) out of the 40 patients. IA was classified as probable in 20 (50%) and documented in 20 (50%) patients, respectively. A favorable response to antifungal therapy was obtained in 21 patients (53%) and the probability of 100-day survival was 70%. Different, though not significant, 100-day survival was observed according to the timing of diagnosis of IA: 51.9% after HSCT; 71.4% after relapse; and 84.6% after diagnosis of underlying disease, p 0.2. After a median follow-up of 0.7 years, 20 patients are alive (50%). Overall, the combination therapy was well tolerated. In multivariate analysis, the factors that were significantly associated to a better overall survival were favorable response to antifungal therapy, p 0.003, and the timing of IA in the patient course of underlying disease, p 0.04.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This study showed that caspofungin-based combination antifungal therapy is an effective therapeutic option also for pediatric patients with IA. These data need to be confirmed by prospective, controlled studies.
authors: Pediatric Hematology Oncology, Department of Pediatrics, University of Padua, Italy. simone.cesaro@unipd.it
authors: Simone
authors: S
authors: Cesaro
authors: Mareva
authors: M
authors: Giacchino
authors: Franco
authors: F
authors: Locatelli
authors: Monica
authors: M
authors: Spiller
authors: Barbara
authors: B
authors: Buldini
authors: Claudia
authors: C
authors: Castellini
authors: Desireè
authors: D
authors: Caselli
authors: Eugenia
authors: E
authors: Giraldi
authors: Fabio
authors: F
authors: Tucci
authors: Gloria
authors: G
authors: Tridello
authors: Mario Renato
authors: MR
authors: Rossi
authors: Elio
authors: E
authors: Castagnola
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000935:Antifungal Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D001228:Aspergillosis / Q000188:drug therapy*; D000077336:Caspofungin; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004359:Drug Therapy, Combination; D054714:Echinocandins; D005260:Female; D019337:Hematologic Neoplasms / Q000150:complications / Q000382:microbiology; D018380:Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation / Q000009:adverse effects; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D053208:Kaplan-Meier Estimate; D055666:Lipopeptides; D008172:Lung Diseases, Fungal / Q000188:drug therapy*; D008297:Male; D009503:Neutropenia / Q000150:complications / Q000382:microbiology; D010456:Peptides, Cyclic / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D000935:Antifungal Agents; D054714:Echinocandins; D055666:Lipopeptides; D010456:Peptides, Cyclic; D000077336:Caspofungin