An atypical case of fatal zygomycosis: simultaneous cutaneous and laryngeal infection in a patient with a non-neutropenic solid prostatic tumor

Ear Nose Throat J. 2008 Mar;87(3):152-5.

Abstract

We describe what we believe is the first reported case of simultaneous highly invasive cutaneous and laryngopharyngeal zygomycosis in a non-neutropenic, nondiabetic but immunosuppressed patient with prostate cancer. An invasive fungal process was not suspected until late in the patient's hospital course; when it was, a tracheotomy and direct laryngoscopic biopsies were performed. Unresectable invasive zygomycosis with Rhizopus rhizopodiformis was diagnosed. The patient was managed with liposomal amphotericin B initially and later with palliative medical therapy until he died. This case emphasizes the need for a rapid and specific diagnosis with timely introduction of appropriate antifungal management, particularly now that voriconazole is frequently used as empiric prophylaxis against aspergillosis in high-risk patients.

Publication types

  • Case Reports
  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Aged
  • Dermatomycoses / diagnosis*
  • Dermatomycoses / microbiology
  • Dermatomycoses / pathology
  • Fatal Outcome
  • Humans
  • Immunocompromised Host*
  • Laryngeal Diseases / diagnosis*
  • Laryngeal Diseases / microbiology
  • Laryngeal Diseases / pathology
  • Male
  • Mucormycosis / diagnosis*
  • Mucormycosis / etiology
  • Mucormycosis / microbiology
  • Pharyngeal Diseases / diagnosis*
  • Pharyngeal Diseases / microbiology
  • Pharyngeal Diseases / pathology
  • Prostatic Neoplasms / therapy*
  • Rhizopus / isolation & purification*