melphalan and Cryptococcosis

We report the recent isolation of Cryptococcus laurentii from the feces of a patient with Hodgkin's lymphoma who underwent autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT). The organism was identified using microscopic morphology, cultural characteristics, and biochemical tests including sugar assimilation. Minimum inhibitory concentration of various antifungals was determined by microbroth dilution method. The recovery of pure culture of C. laurentii from stool culture, and the patient's response to treatment with voriconazole support its potential etiological role. To the best of our knowledge, we report the first case of diarrhea caused by C. laurentii in an HSCT recipient.

Topics: Administration, Intravenous; Administration, Oral; Adult; Antibiotic Prophylaxis; Antifungal Agents; Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols; C-Reactive Protein; Carmustine; Cryptococcosis; Cryptococcus; Cytarabine; Diarrhea; Etoposide; Feces; Fluconazole; Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation; Hodgkin Disease; Humans; Melphalan; Microbial Sensitivity Tests; Transplantation Conditioning; Transplantation, Autologous; Voriconazole

Topics: Adult; Amphotericin B; Azathioprine; Cryptococcosis; Female; Humans; Kidney Transplantation; Lung Diseases, Fungal; Melphalan; Polycystic Kidney Diseases; Prednisone; Transplantation, Homologous