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Infections in Cancer Patients
Annals of Oncology 25 (Supplement 5): v14–v16, 2014 doi:10.1093/annonc/mdu407.5
Educational Lecture EL5
INFECTIONS IN CANCER PATIENTS
abstracts
Cancer patients are in immunocompromised states. Several background factors are necessary to be understood to know why these patients have been in immunocompromised states. Skin and mucosal barriers form the first line of defense against microbial invasion. Decreases in the neutrophil count in the peripheral blood increments the risk for infection. Cell-mediated immune deficiency are seen in
© The Author 2014. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Society for Medical Oncology. All rights reserved. For permissions, please email: [email protected].
Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/annonc/article-abstract/25/suppl_5/v14/2240144 by guest on 24 October 2019
Norio Ohmagari Disease Control and Prevention Center, National Center for Global Health and Medicine Hospital
hematopoietic stem cell transplant patients, lymphatic disorders like acute lymphocytic leukemia and malignant lymphoma. Humoral immune deficiency includes asplenia, splenic insufficiency, abnormal number or defective quality of immunoglobulin, and reduced complement production, etc. It is difficult to identify the infected organ in immune deficient patients. However, there are certain rules one can follow to narrow down the focus to a smaller number of possible organs. For instance, infections in patients with febrile neutropenia tend to present with a few symptoms and findings. Pyelonephritis may present without pyuria, and meningitis may only present with altered mental status without symptom of meningeal irritation or the CFS tests findings may not show elevated white blood cell count. For the treatment of infection in cancer patients, one point of note is to use the patient’s history to efficiently narrow down and identify the pathogenic microbe. Observation is also extremely important, as well as the interpretation of the patient’s condition, and the reason why he/she does not show signs of improvement. In my presentation I will discuss such “actual” cases.
Educational Lecture EL5
INFECTIONS IN CANCER PATIENTS
abstracts
Cancer patients are in immunocompromised states. Several background factors are necessary to be understood to know why these patients have been in immunocompromised states. Skin and mucosal barriers form the first line of defense against microbial invasion. Decreases in the neutrophil count in the peripheral blood increments the risk for infection. Cell-mediated immune deficiency are seen in
© The Author 2014. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Society for Medical Oncology. All rights reserved. For permissions, please email: [email protected].
Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/annonc/article-abstract/25/suppl_5/v14/2240144 by guest on 24 October 2019
Norio Ohmagari Disease Control and Prevention Center, National Center for Global Health and Medicine Hospital
hematopoietic stem cell transplant patients, lymphatic disorders like acute lymphocytic leukemia and malignant lymphoma. Humoral immune deficiency includes asplenia, splenic insufficiency, abnormal number or defective quality of immunoglobulin, and reduced complement production, etc. It is difficult to identify the infected organ in immune deficient patients. However, there are certain rules one can follow to narrow down the focus to a smaller number of possible organs. For instance, infections in patients with febrile neutropenia tend to present with a few symptoms and findings. Pyelonephritis may present without pyuria, and meningitis may only present with altered mental status without symptom of meningeal irritation or the CFS tests findings may not show elevated white blood cell count. For the treatment of infection in cancer patients, one point of note is to use the patient’s history to efficiently narrow down and identify the pathogenic microbe. Observation is also extremely important, as well as the interpretation of the patient’s condition, and the reason why he/she does not show signs of improvement. In my presentation I will discuss such “actual” cases.