Abstract
A study was undertaken to know the intestinal fungal flora in patients with leukemia who frequently have complications with deep-seated fungal infections.
The results were as follows;
(1) The fungal counts per gram of feces in those leukemic patients receiving no antifungal agents ranged from 101.5 to 107.5 with a mean of 103.86, which were larger than those in healthy subjects ranging from 102 to 104 with a mean of 102.55. Also, the leukemic patients exhibited greater variations in fungal counts than the control. Furthermore, the former maintained larger fungal counts for a longer period of time than the latter.
(2) In 12 patients with leukemia, the following fungi were isolated from feces: C. albicans (8 patients), Torulopsis (5), C. tropicalis (3), C. Krusei (1), and Aspergillus (1).
(3) As regards the effect of orally administered Amphotericin B on fecal fungi, the drug resulted in a marked reduction in fungal counts in the intestinal tracts. Neither subjective nor objective side effects were noted in a prolonged therapy.
In patients with leukemia, it is suspected that fungal overgrowth in the intestinal tracts, as combined with the diminished resistance to infection of the hosts, may have very much to do with the presence of deep-seated fungal infection.
It might be recommended that a concurrent therapy with oral amphotericin B is initiated as a precautionary means for treating patients with leukemia since deep-seated fungal infections are very difficult to control in these patients once diagnosed.
