Enteric Infections

Cancer patients, particularly those with neutropenia, are at risk for enteric and intra-abdominal infections. Specific infections and infectious syndromes in this setting include neutropenic enterocolitis, bacterial infections such as Clostridium difficile infection (CDI), viral infections such as CMV colitis, and parasitic infections such as strongyloidiasis. Diagnosing and gauging the severity of CDI presents challenges, as chemotherapy may produce symptoms that mimic CDI and laboratory findings such as leukocytosis are not reliable in this population. Treatment for enteric infections should be pathogen specific, although broad-spectrum antibiotics are often required as initial empiric therapy in patients with neutropenia.