title: Atypical cause of prolonged myelosuppression.
abstract: We present the case of a 57-year-old male with poor prognosis (trisomy 21 and monosomy 7) acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) who presented with rigors and fever during cytogenetic remission. Peripheral and central line blood cultures were positive for Mycobacterium chelonae and he commenced empiric treatment with meropenem, amikacin, clarithromycin and ciprofloxacin. It appears that M chelonae infection was responsible for persistent myelosuppression after expected recovery from chemotherapy, which subsequently precluded optimum treatment for AML.
authors.affiliation: Galway University Hospitals, Haematology, University College Hospital Galway, Newcastle Road, Galway, Ireland.
authors.forename: Andrew
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Smyth
authors.forename: Barry
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Macdonagh
authors.forename: Helen
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Tuite
authors.forename: Catherine
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Fleming
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: O'Dwyer