Hepatosplenic microabscesses in pediatric leukemia: a report of five cases

Hepatosplenic microabscesses secondary to invasion by various organisms may result in life-threatening conditions, especially in patients with cancer. Whether these patients should continue ongoing cytotoxic therapy, which might result in neutropenia, with the risk of progressive abscess formation or fungemia, remains a dilemma. We report five cases of pediatric acute leukemia with hepatosplenic microabscesses in children aged 4 years to 18 years. These patients presented with prolonged fever and neutropenia after antineoplastic chemotherapy, followed by abdominal pain, hepatosplenomegaly and hepatic dysfunction. Abdominal ultrasound and computed tomography (CT) or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) demonstrated multiple small lesions compatible with hepatosplenic candidiasis in all of the patients. Cultures, including blood or stool cultures, were positive in only two cases. Treatment with intravenous antifungal agents, including amphotericin B, liposomal amphotericin B, and/or fluconazole were successful in two cases. These two patients remained event-free and survived for more than 24 months (20 months and 22 months after infection was diagnosed). The duration of systemic antifungal medication administration ranged from 3 months to 22 months. The serial image examinations revealed drastic reductions in small residual lesions in the two patients who survived the longest. The major issues for these patients were how long the antifungal therapy should be administered for, and how to select the optimal drug and dosage to avoid hepatic and renal toxicity. Among our patients, alternative therapy with amphotericin B, liposomal amphotericin B, and fluconazole was used according to the patients' conditions, and the duration of antifungal therapy was determined by clinical manifestations and imaging study changes.