Cryptococcemia in an Elderly Woman with Retroperitoneal Diffuse Large B-cell Lymphoma after Rituximab-containing Chemotherapy

Abstract

Cryptococcemia is a bloodstream fungal infection caused by encapsulated yeasts of Cryptococcus neoformans. We reported an 88-year-old woman in whom C. neoformans colonies of smooth and mucoid phenotypes were sequentially cultured from the blood during treatment of retroperitoneal diffuse large B-cell lymphoma using rituximab-containing chemotherapy. The most likely cause was disease progression of pulmonary cryptococcoma. She was successfully treated with optimal antifungal therapy.

Keywords

• cryptococcemia
• Cryptococcus neoformans
• lymphoma
• rituximab