Mold pneumonia is a serious complication in cancer patients. Reliable detection of etiologic agents is critical for patient care, but optimal testing strategies are undefined. We performed a prospective study comparing molecular tests (specific and unspecific qPCR and FISH) and culture on bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) and serum, focusing on aspergillosis and mucormycosis to gain insights into mold detection in high-risk patients. We demonstrate that FISH visualizes fungal elements in BALF, predominantly conidia, suggesting recent fungal exposure or failure to clear inhaled conidia at the time of diagnostic testing. We find that specific qPCRs from BALF are the most sensitive method to detect Aspergillus and Mucorales, superior to broad-range qPCR, culture, and testing of serum. Importantly, Mucorales DNA is mostly co-detected with Aspergillus, suggesting co-infections. Although DNA detection in serum is more likely in mucormycosis than in aspergillosis, sole serum testing may miss mucormycosis, precluding optimal patient care.

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This study aims to evaluate nationwide diagnostic and treatment capacity for IFD across Colombia’s diverse healthcare system.Between March and Septemb…

Using 2018–2024 U.S. death certificate data, 7,063 aspergillosis-attributable deaths (AAMR 2.43/1,000,000 persons) were identified, mostly invasive pulmona

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A new Danish study finds no association between aluminum in childhood vaccines and 50 different health conditions, including autism, asthma, and autoimmune diseases. The findings reaffirm the safety o...

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Vaccination and prior infection elicit neutralizing antibodies targeting SARS-CoV-2, yet the quantitative relationship between serum antibodies and infection risk against viral variants remains uncertain, particularly in underrepresented regions. We investigated the protective correlation of pre-exp …

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About the Job: The Department of Microbiology & Immunology and the Institute on Infectious Diseases (UMIID) at the University of Minnesota Medical ...

Coccidioidomycosis is a systemic fungal infection caused by <i>Coccidioides immitis</i> and <i>Coccidioides posadasii</i>, which are endemic to the Southwestern United States and parts of Mexico, Central, and South America. While oral fluconazole is widely recommended as first-line therapy, treatmen …

How a retracted study from the 1990s led to a persistent myth about vaccines.

CMI Communications, the official open-access journal of the European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (ESCMID), is looking for an editor with strong clinical and research exper...

A U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website has been changed to contradict the longtime scientific conclusion that vaccines do not cause autism, spurring outrage among a number of public...

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Answers to common questions about vaccine safety and autism.

Coccidioidomycosis-associated hospitalization rates increased from 2016–2021, particularly among older adults, and in-hospital mortality rose substantially