. Detection of non-albicans candidemia in children with acute leukemia and solid tumors

الملخص

Fungal infection is considered as a serious complication following chemotherapy in both maintenance and induction phases and, it comes along with high mortality in pediatric patients. The study aimed to detect fungal infection candidemia (non albicans Candida) in pediatric patients with acute leukemia and solid tumors by performing and using conventional and molecular methods. Methods: Samples were taken from 100 pediatric patients who previously diagnosed with acute leukemia or solid tumors, samples obtained following intensive chemotherapy. Clinical characteristics, and laboratory findings data were also monitored. The samples were then analyzed by using conventional and molecular methods, the BacT/ALERT culture method was done at the same time conventional PCR was performed, moreover the results of PCR were detected in details by gene sequencing method. Results: Acute leukemia and solid tumors were main malignancy included in this study, the patients age was ranged between 3-18 years 51% were male, 49% were females. 14% of the samples were positive for culture method, while PCR revealed only 4% positive samples out of 100, these 6 samples were then diagnosed by gene sequencing (sanger). The end result detected 3 of them, were infected with Candida tropicalis, while one of them suspected to be infected with more than one fungus at the same time, probably.Conclusions:The findings after this research study, suggested that patients who undergone chemotherapy are susceptible to have fungal and bacterial infections. Conventional PCR is crucial to detect such infections, because culture method by Bact/ALERT may not reveal fungal infection especially at the beginning of the disease and may need expansion of the infection in the body to be noticed and detected earlier.