title: Disseminated zygomycosis caused by Cunninghamella bertholletiae in patient with hematological malignancy and review of published case reports.
abstract: Cunninghamella bertholletiae is an unusual opportunistic pathogen belonging to the class Zygomycetes, order Mucorales, and the family Cunninghamellaceae. It has been identified with increased frequency in immunocompromised patients, especially those with hematological malignancy. Clinical infection by this fungus is almost always devastating. We report a fatal case of disseminated zygomycosis due to Cunninghamella bertholletiae in an acute myeloid leukemia patient without chemotherapy. We also reviewed the cases of Cunninghamella bertholletiae infection reported in these 20 years. These cases highlight the high mortality rate and rapid progression associated with this opportunistic fungal infection in immunocompromised patients.
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology, Mackay Memorial Hospital, No. 92, Section 2, Chungshan North Road, Taipei, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Tsung-Ting
authors.initials: TT
authors.lastname: Hsieh
authors.forename: Hsiang-Kuang
authors.initials: HK
authors.lastname: Tseng
authors.forename: Pei-Lun
authors.initials: PL
authors.lastname: Sun
authors.forename: Yu-Hung
authors.initials: YH
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.forename: Gon-Shen
authors.initials: GS
authors.lastname: Chen
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D020093:Cunninghamella / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D017809:Fatal Outcome; D006801:Humans; D015470:Leukemia, Myeloid, Acute / Q000150:complications*; D008297:Male; D020096:Zygomycosis / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000382:microbiology / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology*