Antimicrobial Resistance of Bacteria Isolated From Patients With Cancer.
4 affiliations
- 1Clinical Microbiology, Faculty of Natural Sciences, Autonomous University of Guerrero, Chilpancingo de los Bravo, MEX.
- 2Clinical Oncology, State Cancerology Institute "Dr. Arturo Beltrán Ortega", Acapulco de Juarez, MEX.
- 3Nutrition, School of Nutrition, Autonomous University of Guerrero, Acapulco de Juarez, MEX.
- 4Laboratory Medicine, Faculty of Natural Sciences, Autonomous University of Guerrero, Chilpancingo de los Bravo, MEX.
Abstract
Background
Cancer patients are at high risk of developing infections caused by multidrug-resistant (MDR) microorganisms. Monitoring antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is essential for guiding treatment in this vulnerable population. This study aimed to evaluate AMR patterns and temporal evolution among clinical bacterial isolates-comparing pre-pandemic (2016-2019) versus pandemic (2020-2021) periods and care settings (outpatient vs. inpatient)-recovered from cancer patients at a tertiary care center in Guerrero, Mexico.Materials and methods
An observational, cross-sectional, retrospective study was conducted between 2016 and 2021. A total of 1,019 strains were analyzed using WHONET 2023 software, following the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) M100 cut-off values. Categorical variables were compared using Pearson's chi-squared test (χ²). For antibiotics with absolute frequencies less than 5, Fisher's exact test was applied using STATA statistical software version 14.2 (StataCorp LLC, College Station, TX, USA).Results
Enterobacteriaceae accounted for 73.1% of the isolates, with Escherichia coli (42.3%, n = 431) and Klebsiella pneumoniae (14.0%, n = 143) being the predominant strains. The overall prevalence of extended-spectrum beta-lactamases (ESBLs) was 22.6%. In E. coli, an increase in resistance was observed starting in 2019, with resistance rates > 80.0% for ampicillin and cefixime. When comparing the 2020 period with 2021, resistance in E. coli increased significantly for ciprofloxacin (χ² = 4.144, p = 0.042) and ceftriaxone (χ² = 4.100, p = 0.043). Regarding MDR, 51.0% of E. coli isolates were MDR, while 32.2% of K. pneumoniae strains exhibited extensive drug resistance (XDR). In addition, possible pandrug-resistant (PDR) phenotypes were identified in 14.3% of Acinetobacter spp. isolates. Isolates from hospitalized patients showed higher resistance rates compared to those from outpatients with regard to E. coli for ampicillin/sulbactam (χ² = 4.422, p = 0.035), piperacillin/tazobactam (χ² = 17.519, p < 0.001), and cefazolin (χ² = 6.746, p = 0.009).Conclusions
The results demonstrate a high predominance of Enterobacteriaceae among clinical bacterial isolates from the evaluated oncology population. E. coli exhibited the highest proportion of MDR phenotypes (51.0%), whereas K. pneumoniae showed the highest frequency of XDR (32.2%). The high level of resistance observed among isolates from hospitalized patients could help guide empirical treatment toward alternative therapeutic options.
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BibTeX
@article{valentemorales2026antimicrobial,
title = {{Antimicrobial Resistance of Bacteria Isolated From Patients With Cancer.}},
author = {Yetzil Valente-Morales and Sandra Quintana-Ponce and Margarita Y Kuri-Guinto and Sacnite D Díaz-Gonzaléz and Rocio G Hernández-Nava and Nicolás R Barlandas-Rendón},
journal = {Cureus},
year = {2026},
month = sep,
doi = {10.7759/cureus.116860},
url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42927103},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Antimicrobial Resistance of Bacteria Isolated From Patients With Cancer.
AU - Yetzil Valente-Morales
AU - Sandra Quintana-Ponce
AU - Margarita Y Kuri-Guinto
AU - Sacnite D Díaz-Gonzaléz
AU - Rocio G Hernández-Nava
AU - Nicolás R Barlandas-Rendón
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/09/24
JO - Cureus
DO - 10.7759/cureus.116860
UR - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42927103
AB - Background Cancer patients are at high risk of developing infections caused by multidrug-resistant (MDR) microorganisms. Monitoring antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is essential for guiding treatment in this vulnerable population. This study aimed to evaluate AMR patterns and temporal evolution among clinical bacterial isolates-comparing pre-pandemic (2016-2019) versus pandemic (2020-2021) periods and care settings (outpatient vs. inpatient)-recovered from cancer patients at a tertiary care center in Guerrero, Mexico.Materials and methods An observational, cross-sectional, retrospective study was conducted between 2016 and 2021. A total of 1,019 strains were analyzed using WHONET 2023 software, following the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) M100 cut-off values. Categorical variables were compared using Pearson's chi-squared test (χ²). For antibiotics with absolute frequencies less than 5, Fisher's exact test was applied using STATA statistical software version 14.2 (StataCorp LLC, College Station, TX, USA).Results Enterobacteriaceae accounted for 73.1% of the isolates, with Escherichia coli (42.3%, n = 431) and Klebsiella pneumoniae (14.0%, n = 143) being the predominant strains. The overall prevalence of extended-spectrum beta-lactamases (ESBLs) was 22.6%. In E. coli, an increase in resistance was observed starting in 2019, with resistance rates > 80.0% for ampicillin and cefixime. When comparing the 2020 period with 2021, resistance in E. coli increased significantly for ciprofloxacin (χ² = 4.144, p = 0.042) and ceftriaxone (χ² = 4.100, p = 0.043). Regarding MDR, 51.0% of E. coli isolates were MDR, while 32.2% of K. pneumoniae strains exhibited extensive drug resistance (XDR). In addition, possible pandrug-resistant (PDR) phenotypes were identified in 14.3% of Acinetobacter spp. isolates. Isolates from hospitalized patients showed higher resistance rates compared to those from outpatients with regard to E. coli for ampicillin/sulbactam (χ² = 4.422, p = 0.035), piperacillin/tazobactam (χ² = 17.519, p < 0.001), and cefazolin (χ² = 6.746, p = 0.009).Conclusions The results demonstrate a high predominance of Enterobacteriaceae among clinical bacterial isolates from the evaluated oncology population. E. coli exhibited the highest proportion of MDR phenotypes (51.0%), whereas K. pneumoniae showed the highest frequency of XDR (32.2%). The high level of resistance observed among isolates from hospitalized patients could help guide empirical treatment toward alternative therapeutic options.
SN - 2168-8184
ER -