Case Series: Stenotrophomonas maltophilia in Pediatric Oncology Patients

Authors

Sanila Sarkar
Lea M Stitzlein
Emily Rav
Miriam B Garcia
Shehla Razvi
Michael Chang
Ramia Zakhour

Publication Date

3-1-2024

Journal

Cancer Reports

Abstract

Background: Stenotrophomonas maltophilia is a bacterial pathogen that can be fatal in hospitalized and immunocompromised patients with mortality as high as 69%. Pediatric cancer patients often have risk factors that are common for this infection, making them particularly susceptible. Managing S. maltophilia is especially challenging as it has inherent resistance to several antibiotics. Furthermore, soft tissue infections in neutropenic patients may deviate from the typical clinical presentation of S. maltophilia.

Case details: This case series describes an in-depth examination of three cases involving immunocompromised pediatric patients with S. maltophilia infections. Each case exhibited a distinct clinical presentation, encompassing infection of the blood, lung, and skin, which highlights the variability in which S. maltophilia manifests in immunocompromised pediatric patients. These patients were treated at MD Anderson Cancer Center (MDACC) from 2020 to 2023, unfortunately resulting in fatality.

Conclusions: The study aims to provide valuable insights and guidance for the management of patients with S. maltophilia infections. Emphasizing a heightened clinical suspicion will potentially lead to early initiation of directed therapy against S. maltophilia. Timely intervention may play a pivotal role in improving patient outcomes and reduce further burden to the healthcare system.

Keywords

Humans, Child, Stenotrophomonas maltophilia, Anti-Bacterial Agents, Neoplasms, Risk Factors, Stenotrophomonas maltophilia, immunocompromised, malignancy, pediatric

DOI

10.1002/cnr2.1982

PMID

38419283

PMCID

PMC10913069

PubMedCentral® Posted Date

2-28-2024

PubMedCentral® Full Text Version

Post-print

Published Open-Access

yes