Details

Autor(en) / Beteiligte

• Marín, M.
• Gudiol, C.
• Castet, F.
• Oliva, M.
• Peiró, I.
• Royo-Cebrecos, C.
• Carratalà, J.
• Mesia, R.

Titel

Bloodstream infection in patients with head and neck cancer: a major challenge in the cetuximab era

Ist Teil von

• Clinical & translational oncology, 2019-02, Vol.21 (2), p.187-196

Ort / Verlag

Cham: Springer International Publishing

Erscheinungsjahr

2019

Quelle

Alma/SFX Local Collection

Beschreibungen/Notizen

• Purpose To assess the impact of bloodstream infection (BSI) in patients with head and neck cancer (HNC) in the cetuximab era. Methods We prospectively analysed the epidemiology, microbiology and outcomes of 51 BSI episodes occurring in 48 patients with HNC (2006–2017). We performed a retrospective matched-cohort study (1:2) to determine the risk factors for BSI. Finally, we compared patients who died with those who survived to identify risk factors for mortality. Results The most frequent HNC localization was the oropharynx (43%), and pneumonia was the most frequent source (25%). Gram-positive BSI occurred in 55% cases, mainly due to S treptococcus pneumoniae (21%), and among Gram-negatives, Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Klebsiella pneumoniae were the most frequent. Hypoalbuminemia (OR 8.4; 95% CI, 3.5–19.9), previous chemotherapy (OR, 3.2; 95% CI, 1.3–7.4) and cetuximab therapy (OR, 2.8; 95% CI, 1.6–6.7) were significant risk factors for BSI. Patients with BSI had a higher overall case-fatality rate than patients without BSI (OR, 4.4; 95% CI, 1.7–11.8). Hypoalbuminemia was an independent risk factor for the early (7 day) and overall (30 day) case-fatalities, with ORs of 0.8 (95% CI, 0.6–0.9) and 0.8 (95% CI, 0.7–0.97), respectively. The presence of comorbidities (OR, 7; 95% CI, 1.4–34) was also an independent risk factor for overall case-fatality. Conclusions BSI causes high mortality in patients with HNC and is most often secondary to pneumonia. It occurs mainly among patients with hypoalbuminemia who receive treatment with cetuximab or chemotherapy. The development of BSI in patients with HNC impairs their outcome, especially in the presence of hypoalbuminemia and comorbidities.