Oral posaconazole and bronchoscopy as a treatment for pulmonary mucormycosis in pediatric acute lymphoblastic leukemia patient: A case report

RATIONALE: Mucormycosis is a rare fungal infection that typically occurs in immunosuppressed patients following chemotherapy or hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. PATIENT CONCERNS: An 11-year-old child with newly developed acute lymphoblastic leukemia suffered from the paroxysmal left chest pain, fever, and hemoptysis. DIAGNOSES: We made a histopathologic diagnosis aided by bronchoscopy techniques, which indicated invasive fungal hyphae that are characteristic of mucormycosis. INTERVENTIONS: The patient was treated with oral posaconazole and repeated bronchoscopy interventions for 4 months. OUTCOMES: The patient's clinical signs and symptoms and signs were no longer present. The prior lung lesions were also no longer observable using radiologic methods, and a 3-month follow-up with the patient showed no signs of mucormycosis recurrence. Finally, the patient was cured, when the cancer chemotherapy was stopped. Close follow-up for another 2 years showed no evidence of recurrence. LESSONS: Mucormycosis diagnosis is difficult as clinical and imaging findings vary. This case demonstrates that posaconazole monotherapy combined with bronchoscopy interventions may be a safe and effective treatment option for pediatric pulmonary mucormycosis.