Global Advanced Research Journal of Educational Research and Reviews (GARJERR) ISSN: 2315-5132
February 2017, 6(1): pp. 001-004
Copyright © 2017 Global Advanced Research Journals

Full Length Research Paper

Detection of Blastocystis hominis in patients with neoplasms undergoing chemotherapy or radiation therapy

Boghdady A¹, Sabry H², Nessim NG², Malek R³, Rizk E¹ and Wassef R⁴  

¹Parasitology Department Kasr El-Aini Cairo University.
²Theodor Bilharz Research Institute, Imbaba, Cairo Egypt.
³Clinical Oncology, Department Kasr El-Aini Cairo University.
⁴National Hepatology and tropical medicine research institute.

Corresponding Author Email: nevinenessimtadros@gmail.com

Accepted 13 January, 2017

Abstract

This study was performed to estimate the prevalence of Blastocystis hominis in cancer patients undergoing treatment recruited from the Clinical Oncology Department, Cairo University. Two hundred candidates were chosen and divided into four groups. Group A: 50 patients with haematological malignancies treated with chemotherapy. Group B : 50patients with solid organ tumors treated with chemotherapy. Group C: 50 patients with solid organ tumors treated with radiotherapy. Group D: 50 apparently healthy subjects not known to have malignancy but having G I T complaints were included as control group. Stool Samples collected from all groups were subjected to different copro-parasitological methods including, direct stool examination Stool culture and modified Trichrome stain (MTS). In this study, Blastocystis hominis showed to be the most prevalent protozoon in neoplastic patients (26%). Culture on Jone's medium revealed much higher sensitivity in detecting the protozoon (57 cases which constituted 28.5% of the candidates) Again, in this work, infection rates were higher in Group B patients having solid organ tumors and treated with chemotherapy (32%).In this work, it was found that radiation therapy might have caused irreversible damage while chemotherapy probably resulted in reversible cell jeopardy .This study could be of vital importance in endemic areas, where routine survey for parasitic diseases especially opportunistic parasites and protozoa should be done in cancer and immune suppressed patients.

Keywords: Haematological malignancies, solid organ tumors, chemotherapy, radiotherapy, Blastocystis hominis