Introduction
Invasive fungal diseases (IFD) are important causes of morbidity and mortality in immunocompromised children and adolescents with cancer. Factors that have been linked to the development of IFD in children and adults are the underlying malignancy (mainly acute leukemia), presence of profound and long‐lasting neutropenia, high intensity of the chemotherapeutic regimen, hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, and previous antibiotic therapy. Candida species (spp.) are commonly found in the gastrointestinal tract, and may cause invasive infections in the immunocompromised host when mucosal barrier is disrupted, or normal gastrointestinal flora is modified by antimicrobial treatment.2 Filamentous fungi, including the Zygomycetes class, Fusarium and Aspergillusspecies have also become epidemiologically relevant in this population.3
The main objective of this study was to determine the extent of survival of children and adolescents with cancer, treated for IFD in the last nine years, at a referral center for the treatment of childhood cancer in Brazil. In addition, we aimed to analyze which factors could be determinant to shorten survival.