Vol. 68, No. 3, Jun 2010: 200-204

Fever and neutropenia due to cytomegalovirus infection in a breast cancer patient under chemotherapy: a case report

Received: May 08, 2010    Accepted: May 23, 2010

Zahra Ahmadinejad M.D.*
Ali reza Soleimani M.D.

Department of Infectious Diseases, Imam Khomeini Grand Hospital Complex

Tehran University of Medical Sciences

Background: Fever in neutropenic patients is a medical emergency which may happen in patients undergoing chemotherapy. The definition of neutropenia varies from institution to institution but is usually defined as an absolute neutrophil count (ANC)    < 500 cells/ml or < 1,000 cells/ml with a predicted nadir of < 500 cells/ml. Bacterial and fungal infections are the most important in neutropenic patients. Viral infections with agents such as herpes simplex virus and cytomegalovirus are common but less than other pathogens.

Case presentation: We report a patient with fever & neutropenia following cytomegalovirus infection during chemotherapy course for breast cancer.

Conclusion: Although fever and neutropenia after cytomegalovirus infection is not very common but prompt diagnosis and treatment of this disease reduces the mortality and morbidity associated with cytomegalovirus. For this reason, screen testing for CMV infection in high risk patients including patients with cancer and preemptive therapy in patients with viremia, for prevention of CMV disease could be considered as a strategy for prevention of CMV infection.

Keywords: Fever, neutropenia, cytomegalovirus, breast cancer.

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