Fatal cerebral aspergillosis in acute megakaryoblastic leukemia

A 13 year-old girl was diagnosed as having acute megakaryoblastic leukemia. A serious infectious syndrome appeared during the chemotherapy, not improved by broad spectrum antibiotic therapy. A pulmonary aspergillosis was diagnosed one month later by a second bronchoalveolar lavage. A treatment with Itraconazole, a new antifungal triazole, was started. Despite this treatment, the child died after 3 days. Death was due to multiple aspergillus abscesses disseminated in the brain leading to coma and transtentorial herniation. Autopsy confirmed the cerebral aspergillus abscesses and showed also the dramatic dissemination of aspergillosis in the body. Diagnosis and treatment to aspergillosis in immunosuppressed patients should be made early to improve prognosis.     

Fatal cerebral toxoplasmosis in a leukemia child in remission

We report the case of a 4 year-old boy who died from cerebral toxoplasmosis while in remission from acute lymphoblastic leukemia. The clinical picture was remarkably insidious and non specific: diagnosis is particularly difficult in immunodepressed patients. Diagnosis was made on seroconversion. No autopsy was performed. An association of sulfadiazine-pyrimethamine is often effective, but the prognosis is poor in the absence of a specific and precocious treatment.     

Successful treatment of pulmonary and cerebral aspergillosis in an immunosuppressed child

A favourable outcome was observed in a 12 year-old boy who developed invasive pulmonary and cerebral aspergillosis during antineoplastic treatment for central nervous system relapse of acute lymphoblastic leukemia. Combination therapy with amphotericin B and 5-Fluorocytosine led to complete regression of pulmonary infiltrates. Despite enlargement of the cerebral lesion monitored by computerized tomography, no viable fungi were found in the completely resected abscess after a 4 weeks' course of antifungal treatment preceeding neurosurgery. Histological examination confirmed the diagnosis of an aspergillotic abscess. The initially severe neurological symptoms disappeared after successful surgery. Aspergillus fumigatus was detected in the soil of a potted ornamental plant in the mother's living room, suggesting that this might have been the source of the infectious agent.Supported by the Stiftung Volkswagenwerk     

Fatal myocardial aspergillosis in an immunosuppressed child

A girl with resistant acute myeloid leukemia (AML) had a stem cell transplantation. Preceding transplantation, she had recurrent pneumonitis. No causative agent was identified. Despite several antibiotics including high-dose liposomal amphotericin-B, pulmonary infection progressed. Aspergillosis, always considered, could not be documented. She died from cardiac arrest on the second day after transplantation, with no forewarning of previous heart disease. Pericardial and myocardial aspergillosis was an autopsy finding. Pericardial and myocardial aspergillosis, rare manifestations of systemic aspergillosis, should be considered in any immunocompromised patient with long-lasting pulmonary infection, even in the absence of specific cardiac findings.     

Fatal visceral varicella-zoster virus infection without skin involvement in a child with acute lymphoblastic leukemia

A 5-year-old girl with acute lymphoblastic leukemia in remission suffered from fatal visceral varicella-zoster virus (VZV) infection after the oral administration of a high-dose dexamethasone. She abruptly developed fulminant hepatitis and disseminated intravascular coagulation, and died 3 days later. VZV DNA and antigens were detected in the peripheral blood (6 × 10⁸ copies/mL) and a postmortem liver specimen, respectively. The exposure to VZV was not confirmed and no skin lesions were observed. VZV infection should be considered in patients with unexplained liver dysfunction under severe immunosuppressive condition, even in the absence of viral exposure and skin involvement.     

Fatal pulmonary tumor embolism in a child with chondroblastic osteosarcoma.

Fatal embolic chondroblastic osteosarcoma to the lung is an extremely rare phenomenon. We report a case of a 15-year-old boy who developed bilateral pulmonary embolism shortly after resection of the right distal femur for chondroblastic osteosarcoma. The patient succumbed to right-sided heart failure 8 weeks later. An autopsy revealed extensive intravascular tumor emboli in the bilateral pulmonary arteries and their branches. No metastatic lesions were identified in the lungs. We review the clinical, radiologic, and pathologic findings of this patient and the literature.     

Fatal pulmonary hemorrhage associated with micrococcal infection in two children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia

Pulmonary hemorrhage is a rare cause of death in patients with acute leukemia. Within a 2-month period the authors observed two fatal pediatric cases, which were associated with opportunistic organisms of the genus Micrococcus. Both patients were receiving consolidation treatment for acute lymphoblastic leukemia. The authors discuss the causes of pulmonary hemorrhage in patients with leukemia and review the relevant literature. Micrococci have previously been considered as non-pathogenic, but there is considerable evidence for morbidity and mortality occurring, particularly in immunocompromised patients. The authors propose that micrococcal infection may have been a major predisposing factor for pulmonary hemorrhage in these thrombocytopenic patients.     

Fatal acute fibrinous and organizing pneumonia in a child with juvenile dermatomyositis

Acute fibrinous and organizing pneumonia, a recently described form of diffuse acute lung injury, sometimes affects adults with inflammatory myopathy. We describe a child with juvenile dermatomyositis who had development of acute fibrinous and organizing pneumonia. There does not appear to be a successful method of treatment, particularly in severe cases with respiratory failure.     

Fatal Fournier's gangrene in a young adult with acute lymphoblastic leukemia

Fournier's gangrene (FG) is a fulminant necrotizing fasciitis of the external genitalia. Few reports of FG exist in patients with hematologic malignancies. We describe a case of fatal FG in a 21-year-old man with acute lymphoblastic leukemia who was receiving remission-induction chemotherapy. Despite early local surgery, administration of appropriate antibiotics, resurgery for wider debridement and aggressive ICU support he succumbed while pancytopenic to septic shock, 26 days after initiation of chemotherapy. Multi-drug resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa was isolated from blood and scrotal cultures obtained at initial surgery. FG is a fulminant infection, especially in the face of profound cytopenias.     

Ependymoma, glioblastoma, and acute leukemia in a child

A 5-year-old boy developed an ependymoma; 3 years later, after chemotherapy and radiotherapy, he developed glioblastoma multiforme and acute myeloblastic leukemia. His maternal grandmother had died at a young age of colon cancer. Since ependymoma is not known to predispose to other cancers, the unusual sequence of malignant disease may have been due to combined therapy in a susceptible host.