Features of Clostridioides difficile infection (CDI) in patients with cancer: A seven-year study.
Authors: Gallego Inmaculada , Rodriguez-Fernandez Miguel , Trigo Rodriguez Marta , Herrero Rocio , Merchante Nicolás 
Published: June 2021

e13606

Background: Clostridioides difficile infection (CDI) is frequently seen in patients with cancer. However, information of the features and clinical course of CDI in this specific setting is lacking. Our objective was to describe the clinical picture of CDI in patients with cancer and to compare it with that observed in patients without cancer. Methods: This was an observational cohort study which included all consecutive patients diagnosed of CDI at the Hospital Universitario de Valme (Sevilla, Spain) between January 2014 and October 2020. Recurrence was defined as the reappearance of symptoms of CDI with microbiologic confirmation of toxigenic Clostridioides difficile in the first 8 weeks after the end of CDI treatment according to the Infectious Diseases Society of America criteria. Results: 481 patients had a first episode of CDI during the study period, 102 (21%) had an active neoplasm at CDI diagnosis and 379 (79%) did not had history of active cancer. The proportion of CDI cases in patients with cancer among the total cases of CDI per year was: 2014: 10/70 (17%); 2015: 10/47 (21%); 2016: 17/59 (29%); 2017: 12/80 (15%); 2018: 23/82 (28%); 2019: 16/80 (20%); 2020: 14/73 (19%); p=0.3). When compared with patients without cancer, those with cancer showed differences in: age (68 [58-79] vs 77 [61-84] years; p=0.002); male sex (68 [58-79] vs 77 [61-84]; p=0.002); Charlson comorbidity index > 2 (93 [92%] vs 234 [63%]; p<0.001); nosocomial or healthcare related CDI (90 [88%] vs 275 [72%]; p<0.001); immunosuppression (72 [70%] vs 52 [14%]; p<0.001); hospitalization during the last year (78 [76%] vs 224 [59%]; p=0.001); concomitant use of proton bomb inhibitors (89 [87%] vs 265 [70%]; p=0.001) and concomitant use of antibiotics (45 [45%] vs 125 [33%]; p<0.03). Regarding CDI treatment, 64 (69%), 25 (27%) and 2 (2%) patients in the cancer-group were treated with metronidazole, vancomycin and fidaxomicin, respectively, whereas the corresponding figures in non-cancer patients were 228 (67%), 102 (30%) and 5 (1.5%) (p=0.8). The proportion of oncologic patients receiving vancomycin increased after implementing an antimicrobial stewardship program focused on CDI management during 2017 (2014-2017: 2 [4%]; 2018: 3 (17%); 2019: 11 (73%); 2020: 10 (83%); p<0.001). CDI recurrence could not be assessed in 23 (5%) patients who died during the first 8 weeks of follow-up for reasons other than CDI, including 8 patients with CDI and cancer. Among evaluable patients, 16 (17%) of those with cancer and 61 (17%) of those without cancer had a first CDI recurrence (p=0.9). Conclusions: CDI recurrence rates in cancer patients are similar to that observed in non-cancer patients in spite of a higher frequency of risk factors for recurrence. Appropriate CDI therapy could have counterbalanced this worse profile during recent years. Our study shows that CDI should be included among the scenarios covered by antimicrobial stewardship programs in oncologic patients.