Viral infections may represent up to 26% of the infections identified in cancer patients with pulmonary infiltrates. In a large study examining viral infections in hematological cancer patients, pneumonia was observed in 31% of the cases, and the overall mortality was 15% [12] . In this study, influenza A was the most common isolated agent, and the only independent predictor of fatal outcome was an absolute lymphocyte count £200 cells/ml.