Screening of bloodborne pathogens and antimicrobial susceptibility testing among cancer patients.

Aim: To screen bloodborne pathogens and test for antimicrobial susceptibility among patients with different types of cancer.

Materials And Methods: Fifty volunteers undergoing chemotherapy in Madurai, Tamilnadu (14 males and 36 females) provided blood samples with consent for identification of pathogens by streaking on different selective and differential media. The antibiotic sensitivity for the entire isolates were tested by the Kirby-Bauer method.

Results: Pseudomonas aeruginosa was found to be present in more samples than Proteus mirabilis, Staphylococcus aureus, and E.coli. Percentage sensitivities of blood pathogens to selected antibiotics were found to be: Amikacin 61%, Gentamicin 68%, Co-Trimoxole 31%, and Cefepime 42.8%.