Entries by Amar Safdar

Extrapulmonary tuberculosis active infection misdiagnosed as cancer: Mycobacterium tuberculosis disease in patients at a Comprehensive Cancer Center (2001-2005).

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Aisenberg GM, Jacobson K, Chemaly RF, Rolston KV, Raad II, Safdar A. Cancer. 2005 Dec 15;104(12):2882-7. Abstract BACKGROUND: Extrapulmonary tuberculosis is an uncommon disease in the U.S., even in immunosuppressed cancer patients. This study evaluated characteristics and frequency of extrapulmonary tuberculosis in patients at a tertiary care referral cancer center. METHODS: The records of all consecutive […]

Streptococcus pneumoniae bacteremia in patients with cancer: disease characteristics and outcomes in the era of escalating drug resistance (1998-2002).

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Kumashi P, Girgawy E, Tarrand JJ, Rolston KV, Raad II, Safdar A. Medicine (Baltimore). 2005 Sep;84(5):303-12. Abstract In the current era of multidrug-resistant organisms, the clinical spectrum of Streptococcus pneumoniae infection remains unclear, especially in immunosuppressed patients with cancer. We sought to define the characteristics of pneumococcal bacteremia in patients who were receiving care at a […]

Mycobacterium lentiflavum, a recently identified slow-growing mycobacterial species: clinical significance in immunosuppressed cancer patients and summary of reported cases of infection.

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Safdar A, Han XY. Eur J Clin Microbiol Infect Dis. 2005 Aug;24(8):554-8. Abstract The clinical significance of Mycobacterium lentiflavum, a recently identified nontuberculous mycobacterium, remains uncertain, especially in immunosuppressed cancer patients. The records of all patients in whom M. lentiflavum was identified using a gene sequencing technique between January 2001 and December 2003 were reviewed. […]

Zygomycosis in a tertiary-care cancer center in the era of Aspergillus-active antifungal therapy: a case-control observational study of 27 recent cases.

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Kontoyiannis DP, Lionakis MS, Lewis RE, Chamilos G, Healy M, Perego C, Safdar A, Kantarjian H, Champlin R, Walsh TJ, Raad II. J Infect Dis. 2005 Apr 15;191(8):1350-60. Epub 2005 Mar 16. Abstract BACKGROUND: Anecdotal evidence suggests a rise in zygomycosis in association with voriconazole (VRC) use in immunosuppressed patients. METHODS: We performed prospective surveillance of […]

Francisella tularensis peritonitis in stomach cancer patient.

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Han XY, Ho LX, Safdar A. Emerg Infect Dis. 2004 Dec;10(12):2238-40. Abstract Tularemia with peritonitis developed in a 50-year-old man soon after diagnosis of stomach cancer with metastasis. The ascites grew Francisella tularensis subsp. holarctica, which was identified by sequencing analysis of the 16S rDNA. The infection resolved with antimicrobial treatment. Antibodies detected 4 weeks after […]

The safety of interferon-gamma-1b therapy for invasive fungal infections after hematopoietic stem cell transplantation.

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Safdar A, Rodriguez G, Ohmagari N, Kontoyiannis DP, Rolston KV, Raad II, Champlin RE. Cancer. 2005 Feb 15;103(4):731-9. Abstract BACKGROUND: The restoration of normal immune responses, especially of the T-helper type 1 immune response, is an important predictor of fungal infection outcome in patients with malignant disease who undergo hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT). The […]

Impact of high-dose granulocyte transfusions in patients with cancer with candidemia: retrospective case-control analysis of 491 episodes of Candida species bloodstream infections.

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Safdar A, Hanna HA, Boktour M, Kontoyiannis DP, Hachem R, Lichtiger B, Freireich EJ, Raad II. Cancer. 2004 Dec 15;101(12):2859-65. Abstract BACKGROUND: The efficacy and feasibility of donor granulocyte transfusion therapy (GTX) have changed considerably over the past four decades. The authors sought to determine the impact of high-dose (approximately 5.5 x 10(10) cells) GTX […]

Bacteremia caused by Achromobacter and Alcaligenes species in 46 patients with cancer (1989-2003).

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Aisenberg G, Rolston KV, Safdar A. Cancer. 2004 Nov 1;101(9):2134-40. Abstract BACKGROUND: Achromobacter and Alcaligenes are emerging infectious gram-negative bacterial species that can affect immunosuppressed patients. The authors sought to determine the incidence and characteristics of bloodstream infections caused by these organisms in patients with underlying malignancies. METHODS: All consecutive episodes of hematogenous Achromobacter and Alcaligenes […]